Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We want people to apply and to join. We will work through the process. However, we are now in a situation of full employment and the numbers applying to An Garda Síochána are not reflected across the rest of the public service. The Deputy says that gardaí are leaving in their droves. Less than 1% of gardaí left last year. That does not compare to the numbers leaving private sector employments. In fact, it is much lower. We are doing exit interviews to see if there is more we can do for those who are leaving. It is about investment and protecting gardaí. That is why we have introduced legislation for body-worn cameras and why we have a budget of €2 billion for An Garda Síochána, the highest we have ever seen.

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