Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 411: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the number of members of the Garda reserve it is planned to recruit in 2010. [31608/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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There are currently over 600 attested members of the Garda Reserve with approximately 100 in training.

The Government has set a target strength for the Reserve at 10% of the full time strength of the Force. As the Garda Reserve depends on volunteers who undertake their training and other duties during their free time, it is difficult to predict how many people will commence training in any particular period. However, I can assure the Deputy and the House that the Garda Commissioner is continuing recruitment with the objective of reaching that target. The Public Appointments Service has received over 7,000 expressions of interest to join the Reserve since the start of this year. The Government is strongly committed to the development of the Reserve. It has been a very successful initiative and I am confident that it will continue to flourish into the future.

It is important to note that the moratorium on recruitment and appointments in the public service does not apply to the Garda Reserve, as members are volunteers and do not draw a salary.