Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)

The Minister will be aware of my continuing concern over the fact that we expect approximately 3,000 members of the Garda Síochána to bear arms on our behalf and perhaps use them occasionally without their having any dedicated indoor firing facilities in which to train. Is he really suggesting the issue can be dealt with by having virtual firearms automated training systems, FATS? Are these like computer games or Quasar, at which children play, or Wii software? Is this what the Minister is offering members of the force to receive training in the use of lethal weapons? Does he not accept that training with actual firearms is required and that it is not being provided?

I have pressed this issue on many occasions and know there will be long delays in replacing the facilities in the Phoenix Park and commissioning new ones at the Garda Training College. Are there regulatory or logistical problems associated with the use of the PSNI ranges? Could we change the regulations and put in place a system, whereby members of the Garda could receive training in dedicated indoor firing ranges, as opposed to training with what seem to be advanced computer games? These may be helpful but certainly do not compensate in any way for the lack of training with real guns.

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