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

I wish to raise the associated issue of what I will refer to as the recruitment crisis in An Garda Síochána. At present, we have approximately 14,300 attested members of An Garda Síochána. In my opinion, that is not enough and we need to closer to 16,000. The reason I say that is not simply because of the ever-increasing population in this country, but also because of the ever-increasing number of crimes that are being created as a result of laws being made by this House. Sometimes, Members of the Oireachtas do not recognise or acknowledge the fact that when we make criminal laws, we are creating greater work for An Garda Síochána.

The reason I say there is a recruitment crisis in the Garda is because, this year, we have only been able to recruit 90 members. In fairness to the Government, it recognises that we need to get garda numbers up. In budget 2022, we provided for the recruitment of an extra 800 members of An Garda Síochána, and in budget 2023, we provided for the recruitment of 1,000 extra members. However, when we look at the fact we have only been able to recruit 90 members this year, it emphasises that we have a recruitment crisis.

I want to propose to the Minister of State a number of proposals which I think will be effective in seeking to tackle this recruitment crisis. If we do not tackle it, we are going to find ourselves in a situation, perhaps next year, where we simply do not have sufficient numbers. One of the things we could do quite quickly is to look at changing the retirement age of An Garda Síochána. At present, we lose many qualified, experienced and knowledgeable members of the force because they are required to retire at 60 years of age. If we are having difficulty in recruiting members, we should look at increasing the retirement age for a period of years, and that is obviously something that can only be done in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

A second thing we could do is build upon what Deputy Stanton said in his previous contribution, when he spoke about trying to recruit members from the Garda Reserve. The reason we need to recruit more members into the Garda Reserve, as Deputy Stanton noted, is because that will necessarily provide another flow of recruits into An Garda Síochána.

I also think we need to look at a proper recruitment campaign. When we look around this city, we see the effort to recruit people to work in the health service in Australia. We need a much more active and vibrant campaign when it comes to recruiting people into the Garda.

Another point we cannot shy away from is that this has become a much tougher job and a much less attractive job than it was many years ago. I am not going to talk about the specifics of the horrific incidents we saw over the weekend in parts of Dublin, when gardaí were being attacked but, unfortunately, many people do not find the job as attractive as it was previously. As a society, we need to start emphasising more the importance of the special role gardaí play in protecting our communities. It is a difficult task but it is a task we cannot shy away from.

We must also recognise that in order to make it a more attractive job, we need to ensure there is better protection for gardaí. In particular, I am concerned about the fact I hear body cameras will not be provided to An Garda Síochána until 2024. We need to expedite that.

It is essential that we put together a policy that formulates how we are going to recruit more people into the force. If we do not do that, we are going to find ourselves in the very difficult position, because of ongoing and consistent retirement, that we simply will not have sufficient numbers to police the country and to enforce the laws we make. I am interested to hear what the Minister of State has to say in response.

See this speech in context