Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Browne makes a case for Wexford. There are many other Deputies who will equally make a case for other parts of the country. The Garda Commissioner has to consider a wide variety of factors when she is making that decision.

The point Deputy Browne raises about the mobility of burglary gangs or others intent on criminal activity is an important one regarding the road network. That is why we have placed such a focus on investing in vehicles for the Garda in significant numbers at a cost of tens of millions of euro. There had not been the investment when the economy collapsed but that has now changed, and that will help. We need mobile patrols to deal with the kind of crime that Deputy Browne identifies as well as the response units we now have in place, the use of CCTV and the co-operation between business and local communities. I doubled the funding for organisations, such as Macra na Feirme and Crimestoppers, to help communities work effectively together and there are some good examples of that around the country.

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