Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to hear the Chair say that. As a non-member of the joint committee, I thank him for giving me the opportunity to make a contribution.

The schoolteacher in me was seeking some words of wisdom and I looked at what former US President John F. Kennedy had said about change. He said, "Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future." In saying that, it is important for me, as a Deputy from County Louth, to pay tribute to the current staff, not only in our region but also across the country, who are grappling not only with the changes proposed but also with ever-changing crime demographics. Equally, it is important to pay tribute to the 88 gardaí who were lost in the force, including three in my constituency, namely, Garda Tony Golden, Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe and Sergeant Patrick Morrissey. I am sure they would have been prepared to embrace the changes required.

I welcome the Commissioner's decision this morning not to make decisions on the Border region until we know what the fallout from Brexit is. Obviously, the Border, Brexit and budgeting are the order of the day in the Dáil. I want to ask a few specific questions about Brexit. There is serious concern along the Border about co-operation, particularly in the context of the sharing of information, extradition and trafficking, in the event that a deal is not struck. Policing will be the worse for it, not just in the Border region but also across the rest of the country.

Deputy Fitzpatrick asked from where the model of the divisional policing policy had come. Where will the headquarters be located in the region? What is the position on remoteness from the command centre in Galway?

Last but not least, many regions such as mine suffer more when it comes to crime investigation, particularly the investigation of murders. Where areas are suffering from greater stress, will there be SWAT teams to go in without having an impact on budgets? Like Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick, I am a Deputy from County Louth. I have already written to the Commissioner to come to the county to discuss crime there and meet the policing committees.