Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

I am informed by the Garda Commissioner that there currently is no evidence of vigilante activity in any of the Garda divisions on the Border with Northern Ireland. The Deputy may be referring to a newspaper report from earlier this year relating to local concern in a part of County Donegal about burglaries but local gardaí have worked with the community to ensure an effective and proper response to that particular pattern of burglaries and they have since ceased.

The Deputy asked about the number of community gardaí currently assigned to each of the Garda divisions and I am informed there are nine gardaí in Cavan-Monaghan, three sergeants and 32 gardaí in Donegal, two sergeants and ten gardaí in Louth and in two sergeants and 18 gardaí in Sligo-Leitrim. This makes a total of 76 gardaí who are currently dedicated to community policing in these divisions. These gardaí play an important part in combating crime in local communities and the role generally of community gardaí is to be considerably enhanced by the Garda Commissioner under a new national model of community policing. However, policing in local communities and combating crime in particular is a matter for all gardaí and not simply those assigned to the roles of community policing, which is a point highlighted in a recent report of the Garda Inspectorate.

In the case of the areas mentioned by the Deputy, a crime management team has been appointed in each of the Garda divisions to analyse headline crime in conjunction with the Garda Síochána analysis service. Funding received from the Operation Anvil budget also has been utilised to introduce specific operations to counteract criminal activity in the region. Co-ordinated checkpoints are conducted utilising traffic gardaí, the detective branch and regular uniformed gardaí. A number of community alert and neighbourhood watch schemes are in existence and mountain bike units have been established in each division.

It also is the case that a significant level of cross-Border co-operation between the Garda Síochána and the Police Service of Northern Ireland takes place. There are regular cross-Border crime meetings and at station level, there is daily communication regarding individual crimes and criminals.

I have no doubt that in the event of anyone attempting any type of vigilante activity, the Garda Síochána will take strong and effective action in response.

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