Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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244. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the total number of burglaries and other crimes reported in each Garda district or division throughout County Kildare in the past five years to date; the extent to which the number of reported criminal incidents has fluctuated in the period in question; the actions proposed to combat any increase in such incidents of crime; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7711/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) as the national statistical agency, is responsible for the publication of recorded crime statistics.

To be of assistance, I have asked the CSO to contact the Deputy directly in relation to the specific information requested.

As the Deputy is aware there have been very significant investments in Garda resources which underline the ongoing commitment to supporting An Garda Síochána in opposing crime in all its forms. In particular, during 2016 we will see a further 600 new Gardaí taking up duty, bringing to 1,150 the number of new Gardaí recruited since the reopening of the Garda College in Templemore in September 2014. There will also be ongoing support for anti-crime measures due to the very significant resources committed in the Capital Plan 2016-2021. These include an allocation of €46 million for new Garda vehicles to ensure that Gardaí can be mobile, visible and responsive on the roads and in the community as well as an additional €205 million allocated for Garda technology and ICT systems over the lifetime of the Plan. These investments are making possible targeted Garda operations, including a concentrated drive against burglary and related crimes under Operation Thor, which has to date involved more than 16,000 anti-crime patrols and in the order of 20,000 targeted checkpoints nationwide.

I can also assure the Deputy that the legislation to tackle crime has been strengthened, and would mention in particular the enactment of the Criminal Justice (Burglary of Dwellings) Act2015 which is targeted at repeat burglars who have previous convictions and who are charged with multiple offences of residential burglary. I am very pleased that this new legislation is now available to support prosecutions arising from the carefully considered Garda strategy to disrupt and oppose criminal activity under Operation Thor.