Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

The Minister was specific and I welcome this positive provision. Given the talk about releasing gardaí for more effective work, this is a positive move. Throughout the public service, value for money is a major issue but gardaí are tied up in these locations which relate to specified State operations. It is appropriate, therefore, that if the Minister in conjunction with these bodies feels that an alternative security system as effective as Garda security can be put in place and that powers can be conferred on the officers involved, it is a step in the right direction.

This is the kind of measure for which many Members argued in the House and some went further and stated in regard to traffic enforcement that it could be carried out, for example, by local authority personnel in the same way that rangers operate in the United States. There are other ways of considering these matters. I appreciate that in the case of traffic enforcement the Minister has decided to use gardaí, for which there were probably good reasons. However, in this instance gardaí are standing around in bodies where there might not be a problem for years but which need to be secured because they have important public State functions. It is appropriate that other staff can be recruited by those bodies who would carry out the required security function.