Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I support Deputy MacSharry 100%. We need to do this quickly and put it to bed. I have read the report from cover to cover, and it asks more questions than it gives answers based on the evidence that was provided last week. Value for money and appropriate spending are major issues. What was cited at the committee's meeting last week does not come across in the report that was released. Some people would like to believe that the report put the matter to bed, but it did not. The criteria that were outlined to us and those that were used, and the fact that the Department of Justice and Equality set the criteria, which is unacceptable, do not add up.

As to how certain stations were picked, there is the problem of the report referring to crime levels actually decreasing in an area where a station is to be opened but where the population is increasing. If that is the case, then there are many Garda stations in areas where populations are increasing that will be opened. Many others will have arguments for same.

I subscribe 100% to this request. We can handle this in a morning or afternoon session, whichever the committee decides, but we cannot do it without the attendance of the Secretary General of the Department of Justice and Equality. He has many questions to answer and a considerable role to play. Previously, we requested that the human resources director, Mr. Barrett, attend because he would have had a critical role, particularly in view of the fact that a decision to open a Garda station cannot be made in the absence of resources. They are a key component.