Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for appearing before the joint committee. In particular, I thank Assistant Chief Constable Todd for coming down. I will address questions to him first. Most people here will say what they want from the Garda is to see more gardaí on the beat and on the ground in the community. Does the same apply in Northern Ireland? Is that a useful use of resources or do members of the public need to recognise that one cannot have vast numbers of gardaí on the street all of the time? I can understand the reason the public want that, but is that a sensible way for community policing to develop?