Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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152. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the degree to which she expects the Garda recruitment programme to benefit all divisions throughout the country by way of increased strength; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2102/15]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, 100 new recruits entered training at the Garda College in Templemore in September 2014, the first intake of Garda recruits since 2009. This was followed by an intake of a further 100 new recruits in December. A further intake of 100 is due to enter training at the end of this month. This will bring to 300 the number of recruits in the Garda College since last September and is a measure of this Government's commitment to the Garda Síochána. The first intake of recruits will attest as members of the Garda Síochána in May of this year and will be assigned to Garda Stations by the Garda Commissioner.

It is of course a key objective of the Garda Commissioner to allocate all of the resources at her disposal in a manner which maximises their impact on the protection of the public and on the prevention and detection of crime. In that context, Garda management keep under continuing review developments in relation to security assessments, crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the best possible use is made of resources.