Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

One need only look at the Fine Gael manifesto from before the last election. It included no commitment to bring Garda numbers up to 15,000. I refer finally to the assertion that the distribution of gardaí is a matter exclusively for the Garda Commissioner.

If that is so, there are some very odd things to be explained when we look at the figures on increases for Portlaoise and what is happening in respect of Stepaside. It seems that, on certain occasions, operational matters coincide very much with the interests of certain Government Ministers.

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