Kevin Moran (Longford-Westmeath, Independent)

As the Senator said at the outset, guards have used the barracks since the 1800s. I travelled the length and breadth of Ireland over the summer period and met politicians and gardaí crying out for new Garda stations.The gardaí in the existing station, which has been in place since the 1800s, are going to go into a new, state-of-the-art building. I was the one who purchased the site in 2018. I have come back into this job and I am as frustrated as the Senator, but delays happen. It is a massive project; it is Garda headquarters. I assure the Senator that it will be opened in early 2026. To give the exact date would be unfair on my part because it is a matter for the Garda, but I assure the Senator that the works will be completed.

Working together to deliver on this is far better than political point-scoring, which does not achieve anything. What we have to do is deliver for the people of Bailieborough. I know that is what the Senator set out to do, and that is what I want to do. I spoke to my officials about this only a couple of weeks ago and I have spoken to the Minister for Justice, and I am very confident that the Minister and I will be up in Bailieborough early in the new year.