Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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127. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the extent to which she expects extra members of An Garda Síochána to become available for duty over the next five years; if adequate resources for the procurement of modern technology are likely to become more available; if Garda Síochána deployment and policing strategy is likely to compare favourably with other jurisdictions throughout the European Union, with the objective of achieving best practice; if the use of effective closed-circuit television is likely to become more available in the fight against crime in general, and the activities of criminal gangs in particular, with specific reference to the need to confront the mobilised criminal gangs carrying out raids throughout the country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35248/15]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will appreciate, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the distribution of personnel among the Garda Regions, Divisions, and Districts. Garda management keep this distribution under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the best possible use is made of resources.

This Government is committed to the ongoing recruitment of trainee Gardaí, and to this end the first intake since 2009 of new recruits commenced training at the Garda College, Templemore, in September of last year.

To date there has been four intakes of Garda Trainees to the Garda College, giving a total intake of 400. A further 150 recruits will enter college by year end, bringing total recruitment of Garda Trainees to 550. So far 295 of the new Garda Trainees have attested as members of An Garda Síochána. On attestation, new Probationer Gardaí are assigned to Garda stations throughout the country by the Garda Commissioner, where they are assigned to mainstream uniform policing duties. I am assured by Garda management that the needs of all Garda Divisions are fully considered when determining the allocation of newly attested Gardaí.

I am pleased that the budget allocation for 2016 will allow for the recruitment of a further 600 new Gardaí in addition to the 550 that will be recruited by the end of the year. The ongoing recruitment of new Gardaí is crucial to An Garda Síochána and for the safety of communities throughout the State. Provision is also made in the budget allocation for additional funding for Garda surveillance, special operations and targeted, intelligence-led policing. These measures will ensure that Gardaí have the necessary tools and manpower to tackle the scourge of highly-mobile criminal gangs and to seek to disrupt crime, particularly burglaries, across both rural and urban communities.

The Government Capital Plan 2016-2021 sets out the strategic objectives for investment in the Justice Sector over the life time of the plan. The substantial investment of €46 million for new Garda vehicles over the life time of the Plan, illustrates this Government's ongoing commitment to ensuring that the Garda fleet is modern, effective and fit-for-purpose. Funding will be provided for both regular Garda patrol vehicles as well as specialist, high-power vehicles for targeted operations. Access to new and modern vehicles is vital in ensuring gardaí can be mobile, responsive and visible in both urban and rural communities. This investment builds on the nearly €29 million invested in new Garda vehicles since 2012. So far this year 370 new Garda vehicles have come on stream and I have secured a further €700,000 for the purchase of specialist vehicles to support Gardaí in tackling highly mobile criminal gangs. As regards investment in Garda technology and ICT, the Plan provides an additional €205 million. This will bring the overall Garda ICT funding to €330 million over the lifetime of the Plan and will deliver on my commitment to progress important reforms of An Garda Síochána on foot of last year's comprehensive report from the Garda Síochána Inspectorate on Crime Investigation.

More generally, it is also the case that the Garda Síochána Inspectorate, in its reports on An Garda Síochána, benchmarks the performance of the An Garda Síochána with best international policing practice.

Regarding Closed Circuit Television (CCTV), I am informed by the Garda Authorities that an Advisory Committee was established to advise on all aspects of CCTV operated for the purpose of increasing public safety and reducing the risk of anti-social and criminal activity. This Committee meets every quarter to examine applications for CCTV projects, places them in appropriate categories and makes recommendations relative to prioritisation in accordance with the objective criteria set out under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 and in the Garda Policy for the Operation and use of CCTV schemes.