Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

272. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of gardaí in each county and each Garda district; and the Garda per capita figure for each county and for each Garda district. [32117/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy will appreciate, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the distribution of resources, including personnel, among the various Garda Divisions and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that the optimum use is made of these resources.

The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the number of Garda per capita is not readily available in my Department as the recording of the population by area is a matter for the Central Statistics Office. I am, in any case, advised that ratios such as the number of Garda per head of population are not an appropriate tool to use when considering the allocation of Garda resources as they fail to take account of, among other things, the fact that crime levels and types can vary significantly among communities of similar population size.

In addition, the information requested by the Deputy concerning the number of Gardaí for each county is not readily available in respect of An Garda Síochána as Gardaí are distributed around the country on a divisional basis by the Garda Commissioner. I have received the strength of An Garda Síochána by division as of the 31 May 2017, the latest date for which figures are available from the Commissioner, which I will forward directly to the Deputy.