Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Question 179: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of gardaí in Kildare Garda station assigned to purely administrative duties; if this work could be carried out by civilian personnel; his plans to increase the number of civilian personnel supporting the primary work of the Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9698/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I have been informed by the Garda authorities, which are responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength — all ranks — of Kildare Garda station as on 28 February 2006 was 25. I have been further informed that there is currently one Garda and three civilian staff employed purely on administrative duties at Kildare Garda station.

Garda management state that the figure of one Garda is based on those personnel who are in receipt of designated post and ex gratia allowance and as such are employed on administrative duties. The incumbent in this case is the holder of a designated post.

The civilianisation programme approved by Government in 2001 is to be implemented on a phased basis over a number of years. I am pleased to say that significant progress has been made with the appointment of 113 civilian finance officers who are doing the district finance officer duties which were hitherto performed by gardaí. Moreover, the recent establishment of the Garda information service centre, GISC, in Castlebar, and the pending transfer of civilian staff from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to the Garda Síochána as civil servants of the State are significant developments in the context of greater Garda civilianisation.

The establishment of the GISC alone will, when fully operational, allow for the equivalent of up to 300 gardaí to be freed up for frontline outdoor policing duties. While the immediate focus is on providing the necessary staffing, training and resources so that the GISC will be fully operational during 2006, it is also the case that my Department, on an ongoing basis, reviews the possibility of civilianising other posts where possible, and progress is being made in this regard. However, the civilianisation programme has to be implemented within the confines of the Government decision of 4 December 2002 which placed a cap on numbers across the civil and public service.

I assure the Deputy that I am committed to the ongoing implementation of the civilianisation programme. I am also determined that the additional gardaí being recruited under the current historic expansion of the force will be deployed to frontline, visible and effective policing duties.

In this regard I should add that the timescale for achieving the target strength of 14,000 members of the Garda Síochána in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government remains as when I announced the Government approval in October 2004 for my proposals to achieve this objective. The phased increase in the strength of the Garda Síochána to 14,000 will lead to a combined strength, of both attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of this year.

As part of the accelerated recruitment campaign to facilitate this record expansion, 1,125 Garda recruits were inducted to the Garda college during 2005. The college will induct a further 1,100 recruits this year and again in 2007, by way of intakes to the Garda college of approximately 275 recruits every quarter. This project is fully on target and will be achieved. In this regard, I am informed by the Garda authorities that the first incremental increase of newly attested gardaí under the programme of accelerated recruitment will take place on 16 March.

Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 180: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of gardaí stationed in each Garda district in the Roscommon-east Galway division and the Sligo-Leitrim division; the corresponding figure for 1997; the numbers in each district which are on leave other than annual leave; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9710/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I have been informed by the Garda authorities, which are responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength — all ranks — of each Garda district in the Roscommon-Galway east division and the Sligo-Leitrim division, as at 31 December 1997 and 28 February 2006, was as set out in the following tables.

The Deputy will be pleased to note that in respect of the Roscommon-Galway east division, there has been an increase of 6.9% in the number of gardaí attached to the division since 1997. In relation to the Sligo-Leitrim division, there has been an increase of 6.2% in the number of gardaí attached to the division since 1997.

The decrease shown in Garda personnel assigned to the Manorhamilton district reflects the fact that the necessity for the large Garda presence in the Border counties has significantly diminished since the Good Friday Agreement.

It is the responsibility of each divisional officer to allocate personnel within his or her division at levels on a priority basis in accordance with the requirements of different areas in the division. The allocation of such resources throughout the division is determined by a number of factors, including demographics, administrative functions, crime trends and other operational policing needs.

I am further informed that currently one member of the Garda Síochána in the Roscommon-Galway east division and one member in the Sligo-Leitrim division are availing of parental leave. I am also informed that one member in the Roscommon-Galway east division is on a career break and that no members in the Sligo-Leitrim division are on a career break. Garda management states that there are no members in either divisions on paid or unpaid maternity leave at present. Statistics in relation to members on certified-uncertified sick leave are not available at present.

The timescale for achieving the target strength of 14,000 members of the Garda Síochána in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government remains as when I announced the Government approval in October 2004 for my proposals to achieve this objective. The phased increase in the strength of the Garda Síochána to 14,000 will lead to a combined strength of both attested gardaí and recruits in training of 14,000 by the end of this year. This project is fully on target and will be achieved.

As part of the accelerated recruitment campaign to facilitate this record expansion, 1,125 Garda recruits were inducted to the Garda college during 2005. The college will induct a further 1,100 recruits this year and again in 2007 by way of intakes to the Garda college of approximately 275 recruits every quarter. The first incremental increase of newly attested gardaí under the programme of accelerated recruitment will take place on 16 March 2006.

The Garda Commissioner will now be drawing up plans on how best to distribute and manage these additional resources and in this context, the needs of the Garda districts referred to by the Deputy will be fully considered within the overall context of the needs of Garda districts throughout the country.