Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I pay tribute to An Garda Síochána and its members for the outstanding work they do in a much more complex society than in previous decades in protecting our citizens and working with our citizens every day of every week. They do exceptional work. Our overall Garda workforce is larger than it has ever been. I know the Deputy slipped in the per capita number. It is the highest it has ever been. During Covid, with the closure of Templemore and so on, there was a subsequent delay in recruitment to An Garda Síochána. The latest recruitment campaign was hugely successful in that it attracted approximately 6,700 applications. Our objective is to get as many gardaí on the street as we can. The Minister for Justice, Deputy O'Callaghan, is working with the Garda Commissioner on that. If we take the Garda workforce in its entirety-----

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