Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that 1% or 2% does not seem particularly high, but Garda numbers are particularly low. The Commissioner has talked about getting the numbers up to 18,000, but the 1% or 2% leaving is not being matched by people coming in. There is also the potential for 6,400 gardaí to retire in the next three years, which is incredible. Gardaí are leaving the force for a multitude of reasons but we only have anecdotal evidence of that. We have senior gardaí going into the Civil Service and rank-and-file gardaí going into the Prison Service, but we do not know why they are leaving. If we could capture that evidence, it would be very helpful.

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