Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In the short time allowed to me, a little bit of reality and a few facts might do no harm. It was the former Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Dermot Ahern, who actually stopped recruitment to Templemore. The last recruits graduated in 2011, having entered in 2009. The agreement that Fianna Fáil made with the troika to reduce Garda strength by 1,700 to 13,000 ensured that no further recruitment could happen. Sometimes the facts are important. Fianna Fáil's argument about what this Government has had to do to rescue the country from the abyss it created is ridiculous.

Deputy Ó Cuív, who apparently always comes into the House as the honest broker, told us there was always a car available in his area. There is a car available there now only because the Government put in place a budget to ensure cars would be replaced. There was nothing when we came into office and nothing in Fianna Fáil's proposals.

I do not want to read from the first page of the formal script.

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