Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Senator Leyden suggested that every eastern European coming into this country should be profiled on his or her way in and I certainly would not agree with those comments.

It has been an up and down week for An Garda Síochána. We have seen more arrests this morning, including that of a 15 year old boy and a man in his 50s, in connection with the protests in Jobstown. Many people are asking fundamental questions about the nature of that investigation and its apparent heavy handedness. That said, it is important that we recognise the good work of An Garda Síochána. I wish to raise an issue which was brought to my attention by someone who is entering that profession. He is one of the new garda recruits who got through the application process - for which there were 25,000 applicants - and is now in Templemore. He has huge concerns about the pay and conditions under which he will be expected to work. When the new recruits graduate they will only be earning €23,171 before tax is deducted but the last group of recruits, who graduated in 2009, were paid approximately €31,000. The latest recruits are very concerned about their pay and conditions and their ability to work as gardaí on the beat. I know that the Minister for Justice and Equality - or a Minister of State in that Department - is in the House regularly to deal with issues relating to An Garda Síochána but the pay and conditions of new gardaí and how they can be expected to survive on the amount they are paid is an issue that should be examined. Perhaps it is an issue for the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform because the pay rates seem to come under the remit of various pay agreements negotiated by that Department.