Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

That is all wishful thinking. The Minister supposedly had five categories for making this decision: population - we are double the size of Clare; geography - I have told him that Ennis is 120 miles away; crime levels - they are way higher in Tipperary than in Clare; future growth - there is a huge expansion in Tipperary; and workload - the Minister read out numbers of gardaí but he did not account for the number out sick or those who have left the service. The decision to remove the Garda HQ from Thurles is a travesty of justice for the people of Tipperary. The Minister has neglected to support them. He will not give them a new Garda station in Clonmel. The one that is there is a Dickensian kip. We have no numbers in Carrick-on-Suir, Roscrea or many other areas. The proud history of dedication of the Tipperary gardaí has been dismissed in the pursuit of a restructuring model that will only escalate the crisis we already have in Tipperary for appropriate and timely access to gardaí.

I never said people will have to go to Ennis to report a crime. The Minister is trying to twist the story. I am saying this is a retrograde step. I have given the Minister the five categories. The GRA and the gardaí on the ground do not want this. Will there be two joint policing committees, one in Tipperary and one in Shannon or does the Minister expect the councillors to travel to Ennis for meetings as well? This is a disgrace, a travesty and an insult to the proud history of the Garda service in Tipperary.

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