Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There is no harm in people being ambitious. When the Taoiseach said it would be hard to meet, that was the case at the time. I have clearly said that we will not meet that target but the fact that we are most likely going to surpass 800 between those who have gone through the college, those in the college and those coming into the college this year is an indication of the momentum we are building. There are many people who want to join An Garda Síochána. That is evident in the number of people who have applied to the recruitment campaign in recent months.