Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

This is a management issue for the Garda Commissioner. It is something that can be the subject of a conversation between us, but the Garda Commissioner has a statutory function in this regard. It would not be appropriate, therefore, for the Minister to designate or identify particular stations for closure.

The Deputy has made the case for closure. He is talking about a Garda station that is only open for two hours a day. Many police stations are in place for historical reasons; there was no overall policing strategy. They were built before all the modern systems of technology became available and before we had internal Garda communications systems or mobile phones. They date back to a time when there were not many cars on the road. If we are to provide an effective policing service, we must do it using modern technology and communications systems.

It is difficult to argue that a Garda station that is open for only two hours a day plays a major security role for any local community. What is important is that the local gardaí in the overall district know the areas of difficulty and are able to respond when an incident occurs or to prevent one occurring.

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