Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 71: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide an update on the proposed civilianisation policy being discussed between himself and the Garda Commissioner; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24737/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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1There are currently around 2,100 full-time-equivalent civilian support staff in the Garda Síochána.

These staff provide vital support services in a wide range of areas, such as human resources, training & development, IT and telecommunications, finance and procurement, internal audit, research and analysis, accommodation and fleet management, scene-of-crime support and medical services.

However, while the current number of civilian support staff is an increase on previous years, more needs to be done. The fact is that the level of civilian support staff in the Garda Síochána is still significantly lower than in many comparable police forces.

That is why the Programme for Government commits to ensuring that administrative duties are carried out by civilian staff in order to free up highly trained Gardaí for preventing and detecting crime. It makes no sense to have highly - and expensively - trained Gardaí engaged in administrative work. The Government's objective is supported by the findings and recommendations of the 2009 Garda Inspectorate report on Resource Allocation, which called for the numbers of Gardaí available for operational duty to be maximised through a structured programme of civilianisation.

It is also worth saying that the Garda Commissioner and Garda management very much recognise the contribution made by civilian support staff both in releasing Gardaí for operational duties and in bringing skills and expertise into the Force. Of course, in seeking to increase the number of civilian support staff, we must face the reality of the need to reduce overall numbers in the public service. The answer may lie in the more effective use of resources across the public service, including in particular more flexibility in redeployment of staff to priority areas. Indeed, the Garda reform agenda under the Croke Park Agreement contains a specific commitment, agreed by Garda management and the Garda Associations, to augment civilian support staff in the Force through appropriate redeployment of staff from elsewhere in the public service.

I will remain in ongoing consultation with my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform on the implementation of this Government commitment.