Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. Táim sásta go bhfuil an tAire sinsearach, the senior Minister, is here to deal with this issue.

The Garda Commissioner announced a ban on Garda overtime two weeks ago. That caused considerable concern among gardaí, the Garda Representative Association, GRA, and the public. Something like this occurred in December last year as well but for a much shorter period and funding was found. This year, we are facing a ban that will last for the full final three months of the year. I am concerned that the scale of the pullback in policing this will cause will have potentially serious ramifications for crime and community safety.

The lack of front-line gardaí means overtime has become a fact of life. Sergeants and superintendents say that overtime is essential just to keep a station and a district functioning on a basic level.

Stations cannot function properly without it. For all the Minister's talk, most Garda stations only run at a standstill, even with additional probationary gardaí. Practically every Garda subdistrict and division has fewer gardaí than in 2010 and 2011. To give the Minister a flavour of that in Cork, Garda strength in Blackrock Garda station is down from 31 to 22, Ballincollig from 23 to 19, Watercourse Road from 50 to 45 and Togher is down from 61 to 59. Across the division, Garda strength has declined from by 22 from 700 to 678. However, the position is much worse because senior gardaí have been centralised in specialist units. Who will take the place of upwards of 22 gardaí in the division? It is the current gardaí who do more to fill the gaps through approved overtime. In the absence of this overtime, operations and ordinary patrols will not proceed. Overtime is needed to try to fill the gaps and keep an adequate number of gardaí rostered and patrols and checkpoints on the streets.

A ban on overtime is a blunt instrument. This is essentially an outright ban, which means we are heading for a long winter with gardaí being pulled and stretched in every direction. The Christmas period often sees an increase in crime, specifically burglary and public order issues, as well as greater demand for managing major events and increased road traffic patrols and checkpoints. Gardaí will be expected to do all this with only the most basic resources.

The Minister will echo Commissioner Harris's statement that overtime will still be available for specific policing and security operations, but only with the approval of the relevant assistant commissioner following discussion with the deputy commissioner in charge of policing and security. All additional overtime sought by any station will have to go to the desk of two of the most senior gardaí in the country. Officers have been advised that it should only be incurred if approved in exceptional circumstances. Either the two senior gardaí in question will spend the rest of the year going through reasonable overtime applications or, far more likely, many sergeants and superintendents will assume they are not meant to ask. In the meantime, much work that the gardaí would do and want to do will not happen.

Last week, I paid tribute to the Garda on the significant successes it achieved recently in tackling the scourge of serious and organised crime. Some of that involved major operations and investigations and was intelligence-led. A significant roll-out of checkpoints and surveillance also played an important role. Will such measures be sanctioned? Will we see patrols on the streets where we need them? A lack of overtime will seriously hamper the ability of the Garda to continue with these operations. The Minister said he meets gardaí regularly. He needs to meet the Garda Representative Association, GRA, on this issue, and with Commissioner Harris to see how this can be resolved because I am concerned that this will not work over three months.

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I listened carefully to the Deputy. I want to clarify that the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the allocation of the very substantial budget that An Garda Síochána receives. I do not politically interfere in policing matters nor direct the Commissioner where to deploy resources. The allocation of Garda resources is a matter for the Commissioner, in light of his identified operational demands and arrangements for Garda overtime. It is not a matter for which I, as Minister, have responsibility. This is in accordance with the Garda Síochána Act 2005 under which the Garda Commissioner is the Accounting Officer for the Garda Vote and is responsible for the effective and efficient use of the resources at his disposal. Under the Act, the Commissioner is responsible for directing and controlling the Garda Síochána and for carrying on and managing generally the administration and business of An Garda Síochána.

I again confirm the Government’s firm commitment to supporting An Garda Síochána and ensuring that the organisation is appropriately resourced. The resources available to An Garda Síochána have reached unprecedented levels, with provision this year of more than €1.6 billion, including the allocation of €98.5 million for overtime. As I stated, the allocation of these resources is a matter for the Commissioner, in light of his identified operational demands. I am informed by the Garda authorities that expenditure on overtime to the end of September 2018 amounted to €95.1 million. I am further informed that, in order to limit the projected overspend for this year, the Commissioner has directed a number of measures to effectively manage Garda resources and limit the need for additional public funding. I am informed that these measures include cancellation of overtime for administrative purposes to ensure that front-line policing services have the required resources for the remainder of the year. I understand that some other measures have also been put in place in relation to overtime. For example, Garda management has been directed to ensure that Garda duties such as attendance of Garda members at courts and in the management of prison escorts are undertaken on regular tours as opposed to on overtime. A range of other measures to reduce expenditure across a number of other subheads, including travel and subsistence, was also introduced to limit the need for additional funding.

Management of Garda resources by the Commissioner in this way does not equate to a ban on overtime, as mentioned by the Deputy. I am informed that the cancellation of overtime for administrative purposes is precisely to ensure that front-line policing services continue with sufficient resources. I have been informed by the Garda authorities that all essential policing operations, such as Operation Thor, will continue as before.

I remind the House that Garda overtime cannot be considered in isolation. We are making tangible progress on achieving the Government’s vision of an overall Garda workforce of 21,000 personnel by 2021, including 15,000 Garda members, 2,000 reservists and 4,000 civilians. Since the opening of the Garda College in Templemore in September 2014, almost 2,200 recruits have attested as members of An Garda Síochána and have been assigned to mainstream duties across the country, including Cork.

The unprecedented investment now being made in Garda ICT infrastructure, with €342 million between 2016 and 2021, will enable An Garda Síochána to deliver on reform, work more efficiently and deploy the latest cutting edge technologies in delivering professional policing and security services for the community, as conceded by Deputy Ó Laoghaire.

The key issues are that management of the Garda budget, including overtime, and management and control of An Garda Síochána are matters which, by law, fall to the Garda Commissioner.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I am disappointed by the response and fairly sure that people listening in will also be disappointed. At the end of the day, the Minister is the paymaster. There are budgetary issues for An Garda Síochána, some of which may relate to its management of resources. There has to be a better way to approach this than the blunt instrument that has been put before us. The Minister may argue that this is not a ban but when one asks districts and divisions to clear the test set for them, that is as good as an overall ban. The Minister is the paymaster and the person with the greatest political accountability for An Garda Síochána and its role in tackling and preventing crime and in community safety. If this becomes a difficulty over the course of this winter, I would not be surprised if the Minister started to sing a different tune. He should head this off at the pass and seek a meeting with the GRA. There is nothing to prevent him from doing that under any statute. He meets the association regularly. He should meet it about this specific issue, hear what its representatives have to say and let them outline the implications that this will have.

John O'Keeffe of the Garda Representative Association stated:

This is an extraordinary development. As overtime is only ever incurred where necessary and must be approved in advance. Where the requirement continues to exist, it is clear evidence of a resourcing issue. Overtime is essential if our members are to provide an effective policing service to the general public in Dublin and across the country.

He also noted that the Oireachtas needed to be especially conscious of the "signal this directive sends to the criminal fraternity". The GRA is expressing very serious concerns, which are warranted. Whatever way one cuts it, fewer hours means less policing and less Garda visibility on the streets. The Minister will be answerable for that. There is time to resolve this matter. There are three months of the year left. The measure is probably beginning to cut. The Minister should head this off at the pass, meet the GRA and try to explore alternatives.

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I am concerned to ensure that any potential misunderstanding of this issue is firmly avoided. Management of Garda overtime is not a matter for which I have responsibility as Minister.

Budgetary provision for An Garda Síochána is more than €1.6 billion, including an allocation of almost €100 million for overtime. The allocation of Garda resources is a matter for the Commissioner in the light of his identified operational demands. I am informed by the Garda authorities in response to the projected overspend for this year that the Commissioner has directed a number of measures to manage the resources of An Garda Síochána effectively. I want to ensure that the measures are such that front-line policing services that have required resources for the remainder of the year are intact. I have been informed that all essential policing operations such as Operation Thor will continue as before.

I do not accept that there is a ban on overtime. I do not consider the actions of the Garda Commissioner as a ban on overtime. Overtime cannot be taken in isolation from the other resources available to An Garda Síochána. There has been significant capital investment in Garda ICT and in the Garda fleet. We are making real progress in increasing the numbers to achieve the targets for the next three years. Under the governance and oversight arrangements in place between my Department and An Garda Síochána, there is regular structural engagement between An Garda Síochána and all relevant parties relating to resources, including overtime, as appropriate. It is for the Garda management to manage effectively and efficiently the significant resources being made available to them in accordance with operational need. The Commissioner has my full support and that of the Government.