Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister on his appointment to this role and wish him the best for the future. When I think about policing in Ireland, it strikes me that to date we have been very lucky in that as a nation, we have always held our gardaí in such a high degree of respect. The relationship between the gardaí and our communities has always been very strong. When one looks at other countries where they have not got that right, one can really see what a difficult situation that creates in towns across those countries. It leads to a very divisive type of policing. That is something we need to recognise here. However, in recent years under-resourcing of An Garda Síochána has made life very difficult for gardaí. When I was in school, many of my friends were so excited to get into the gardaí. They tried and tried and eventually they got in. They were so honoured and proud to do it but when I speak to those same gardaí now, they are really beaten down and they just cannot wait to get out.

That is a very difficult place not only for them individually but, as a State, it is something we need to recognise. The culture and the pressures put on gardaí at the moment make it very difficult for them and I hope that over the course of this term, the Minister will be able to address some of those issues.

When I speak to my people in my constituency about the Garda, they recognise that the relationship with the Garda has always been very good, but it is said to me all the time that people just do not see gardaí anymore. It does not matter whether that is in Blessington, Bray or Wicklow town. Everyone will say they never see a garda on the streets. There are gardaí who are working very hard in the stations, but there just are not enough of them and that message has been put consistently to the Minister during this debate. The area of community gardaí is one where a reduction in numbers is really impacting on the ability of gardaí to form those relationships with community members and young, vulnerable and older people. Where gardaí know the names, circumstances and stories of people within the communities, they can act as a preventative force and not just deal with issues as they arise. That is one area on which I would love to see a greater focus. Throughout County Wicklow, there are only nine community gardaí. For 156,000 people, that is one community garda per 17,000 people. I know many of those community gardaí and they do incredible work, but there are not enough of them. A lot of the time, they are taken off their community garda role when other issues arise and they are needed in other parts of the Garda system.

A constituent of mine who contacted me this week is a mature applicant to the Garda recruitment process. He has passed the recruitment stage and has been awaiting vetting for months. It was 2024 when he applied, although he raised the issue that some people have been waiting for up to a year to be vetted. Obviously, when we do not have enough gardaí, that is a key aspect. The Minister might look into the vetting process, and it would be great if he would examine that particular case.

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