Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Calleary for raising this issue. I am aware of reports about a number of violent and public order incidents that have occurred in Longford recently. I am not in a position to discuss specific details about Garda operations in the area but I can assure the House that gardaí will not permit a small number of individuals - in this case families who are feuding - to put local communities in fear for their safety. Criminal acts of this nature have no place in civilised society and An Garda Síochána is determined to bring the perpetrators of these acts to justice as soon as possible and to protect and reassure the broader communities.

The House will be aware that the Garda Commissioner and his management team are solely responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, including personnel, with regard to new and emerging crime trends. Neither the Government nor the Minister for Justice and Equality are permitted to intervene in Garda operational matters, and we should not. We do, however, have a responsibility to make sure that the resources are available to the Garda Commissioner and his teams to make sure they can respond appropriately.

The Government has made unprecedented resources available to An Garda Síochána. Budget 2019 saw the allocation of €1.76 billion to An Garda Síochána to help it carry out its vital functions. In December 2018 the Government endorsed the report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland, accepting all 157 recommendations. A four year high level implementation plan was also published, with progress overseen by a dedicated programme office in the Department of the Taoiseach. There is a considerable amount of work to be done, including drafting new policing legislation that will ensure the broader concept of community safety will be embedded in statute. Key to this is policing in partnership with communities, other Departments and agencies that provide essential services and supports to communities and individuals who are at risk. The Garda recruitment campaign is currently under way, which will ensure that An Garda Síochána remains on target to reach the figure of 15,000 sworn members by 2021. The number of sworn gardaí is now in excess of 14,000 with 200 more gardaí having attested on 7 June. A further 200 gardaí will attest before the end of this year.

I share the Deputy's concern. We need to ensure that the Garda is resourced to respond to new criminal threats, be they gangland crime or families feuding. We need to ensure the necessary resources and skills are available from a training and equipment perspective for An Garda Síochána but the allocation of resources and planning on the ground has to some from the Garda Commissioner.

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