Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Chambers' first question on the ANPR technology is an operational matter. The ICT funding we allocated would cover that technology if the Garda decided to install it in vehicles. The goal would be to have a fairly comprehensive usage of ANPR technology because it is incredibly helpful in crime detection. I am informed there are some vehicles with that technology installed in every division. Clearly, the operational decision that has been taken is to make sure that throughout the country some vehicles have this technology installed. The goal would be to move to a fairly comprehensive management of ANPR technology with new vehicles. I will see if I can the get a more detailed breakdown on the approach to this and I will forward it to the Deputy. Essentially, it is an operational decision. From a policy point of view, I would fully support it. The funding it would provide would be intended to cover the increasing use of ANPR technology in vehicles.

On the issue of Garda retirements, that has been built in, following discussions with An Garda Síochána, to ensure we reach the target figure of 15,000. It has been agreed that to reach that figure, taking account of retirements which will average approximately 300 per year, we would need to recruit 800 gardaí, but that can be subject to review as we note the level of retirements. The agreement we have come to on the number of gardaí that will go into Templemore is based on an assessment of the retirements not only over a year but over the five-year period. Plans have been made on that basis. The retirements will average 300 per year but it is difficult to predict the number precisely. We have had detailed discussions on the numbers we would need to recruit, taking account of retirements over the entire period, to reach the target figure of 15,000.

I will deal with the Deputy's last question and then return to the prisons issue. I am awaiting the outcome of the ballot and I have full respect for that. What I have said about it, and what I hope will happen, is that every garda in the country who has a vote in that ballot will have all the information on the offer on the table. I understand that is what both Garda associations are ensuring. If there is an agreement and if it is passed, there will be budgetary implications. I welcome the recommendations from the Labour Court which seeks to address the concerns articulated by the representative bodies about Garda pay and conditions, including those of new recruits. There is also access to the new dispute resolution mechanisms. That is part of the agreement. Once the outcome of the ballot is known, and if the proposals are accepted, and I hope they will be, the additional budgetary cost will be the subject of discussions between my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. In that regard, officials of both Departments can have initial discussions but until we have the outcome of the ballot, we will not be going any further on that. The most important thing at this point is to give the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors, AGSI, and the Garda Representative Association, GRA, the time and the space to discuss the issues that are before them.

On the prisons issue, I understand the savings in this area are due to the fact that there has been a slowness in recruitment. I am told that in quarter 2 of 2016 the Public Appointments Service carried out a job analysis of the recruit prison officer role and designed a revised competency framework for use in the selection process. The previous one to that was done in 1998. We made a decision to recruit more officers in 2016 and it coincided with significant changes in the service. It was considered appropriate that the job analysis should be revisited. The principal aims were to identify whether the job had changed and also to consider the evolving nature of the role. The size of the prison population has shrunk since 2008 and an increasing emphasis is being put on the rehabilitation of prisoners. Technology continues to change the balance of prison officers' duties and a higher proportion of their time is spent in contact roles while information technology is increasingly used for monitoring and management of the prison population. This large item of work was done and it has meant that there has been an underspend because that delayed the recruitment, but it is intended that the first classes of the new recruit prison officers will begin their training at the end of quarter 1 in 2017. The Irish Prison Service, IPS, is also recruiting prison administration and support officers who are due to commence service in January 2017. The fact that the funding is in the base is important.