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

I confirm that 25 reservists are assigned to the division in the Deputy's area. The allocation of reservists is an operational decision by the Commissioner. One of the initiatives being examined in the review of the role of the reservists is the possibility of recruiting locally rather than centrally. This may well be very worthwhile in terms of local interest and people can be encouraged to apply.

As I stated to Deputy Cahill's colleague, we are going to double the number. This will start from the middle of next year. The number has been depleted in part because the Public Appointment Service was focusing as a priority on recruiting members of An Garda Síochána. We now have a focus very much back on doubling the reserve as we have the commitment in the programme for Government. The review is ongoing. The Garda Commissioner has announced the extension of some powers for the Garda reservists. We must ensure that in the first instance Garda reservists are doing work which is helpful to An Garda Síochána, that they are getting job satisfaction and that the work adds to the safety of local communities. The review of the job description is timely given that recruitment will start next year and the Reserve will be doubled. It can only benefit communities, such as the Deputy's, when we will have an increased number of reservists available to be deployed throughout the country.

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