Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Murphy. Her points are valid in respect of morale being a requirement, that people have pride in the job they do and that they Garda force, as a unit, has high morale. There are a number of things on which the Minister will be able to work to improve that in the shorter term. Clearly, in terms of the force itself as a professional competent force, issues have been identified by the Guerin report which the Government will address, with the Minister's propositions to come back after the decisions made yesterday are implemented.

On the question of resources being available, one does not need an expert group to recognise there is always a need for extra resources. The former Minister, Deputy Shatter, fought very hard for extra finances for vehicles and facilities for the gardaí in order for them to do their job. We do not need an expert group to tell us that. Resources for any Department are contingent on the overall position of the economy and how the Government structures its budget. Of course, it is impossible to do a job competently as a professional force if facilities are not made available and, if they are not available to the level one would expect, morale always suffers but it is not always the issue.

I take the Deputy's point about resources being static in each of the districts. The districts themselves have changed but I agree it is a case of "if needs be" where provision has to be made to service the community and citizens and to provide the facilities for the force to do its job as one would expect. These points are valid. As the decisions of the Government are being implemented and as we move towards the statutory authority and its responsibility, the Deputy will have the opportunity to contribute and to make these points to see where they might be practical and, where acceptable, to be implemented.

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