Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Senior gardaí have argued at joint policing committee meetings that rather than being a cost-saving measure, this approach is an attempt to reform how the State is policed. Ireland is changing. Is it the same place it was 20 years ago, when all of the Garda stations that are now being proposed for closure were open? Of course it is not. The advance of communications technology over the last 20 years must prompt a review and a change in many circumstances. Garda management must act on and embrace this requirement. I accept that we could do with additional gardaí. After ten years of economic mismanagement by Fianna Fáil, we cannot afford to employ more gardaí, teachers or front-line public servants.

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