Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome the attempt by the Minister to get gardaí out from behind a desk. They are responsible for an enormous number of duties, as I pointed out to the Minister, in addition to office work.

On the demise of the traffic corps, there has been a 27% decrease in its strength in Galway with a fall from 51 officers in 2010 to 37 in 2017. I do not have the figures for 2018. In the Roscommon-Longford Garda division there has been a 32% drop in numbers in the Garda traffic corps since 2011, decreasing from 25 officers to 17 in 2017. A similar situation pertains in Sligo-Leitrim and other parts of the country. In 2011, there were 940 officers in the traffic corps, which is dedicated to road policing, but that declined to 669 in 2016 and 643 in 2017. I am sure the Minister will agree that the Garda traffic corps is crucial to crime prevention and the implementation of traffic law. What are the plans in regard to the traffic corps? Does the Minister intend to increase its strength?

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