Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I can guarantee the Minister there is a great need for new Garda recruitment. The number of gardaí in the west Cork division fell from 318 to 270 between 2010 and 2015, which is down 48. Many stations were also closed, including Ballinspittle, Adrigool, Ballydehob, Goleen, Ballingurteen and Castletownshend. The Minister must realise that many towns and villages throughout west Cork do not have 24-hour cover and are therefore on the back foot from the very start. Gardaí in these areas are reacting to incidents rather than ensuring preventative measures are in place. This, I must stress, is through no fault of their own. When many of the rural stations were closed, resources should have been afforded to the larger stations to counteract the closures around west Cork. I ask the Minister to comment on that.

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