Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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660. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Garda stations and their geographic location that are not computerised. [38536/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will appreciate, decisions in relation to the provision and allocation of Garda resources are a matter for the Garda Commissioner and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter.

I am, however, informed by the Garda authorities that there are some 156 stations that are not connected to the Garda IT Network. For operational and security reasons the locations of these stations are not being released. Members in non-networked locations can contact the Garda Information Services Centre to provide relevant details to trained civilian call-takers who enter the details on the PULSE system.

The Deputy will be aware of the Garda Síochána Modernisation and Renewal Programme 2016-2021 which is intended to professionalise, modernise and renew An Garda Síochána to ensure that the organisation can meet present and future challenges. As part of the Programme, the matter of enhancing rural access to the Garda network by connecting non-networked sites to the network is being examined. This includes plans to introduce mobile technology solutions to enable operational Gardaí to access core information systems, including PULSE, while on duty and away from Garda stations.