Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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686. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if the nine gardaí who are leaving a Dublin station (details supplied) in September 2017 will be replaced in view of ongoing serious crime and persistent antisocial behaviour in areas served by this station. [38985/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will appreciate, it is the Garda Commissioner who 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. I am informed by the Commissioner that in regard to the deployment of Garda personnel, a distribution model is used which takes into account all relevant factors including population, crime trends and the policing needs of each individual Garda Division. It is the responsibility of the Divisional Officer to allocate personnel within his/her Division.

The area referred to by the Deputy forms part of the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) North Division. I have been informed that the number of Gardaí assigned to the Division on the 31 July 2017, the latest date for which figures are readily available, was 667 with 46 Garda Reserves and 38 Civilians also attached to the Division. Of the Gardaí, 220 were assigned to Ballymun District with 119 in Ballymun Station. When appropriate, the work of the Division is supported by a number of Garda national units such as the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau.

This Government is committed to ensuring a strong and visible police presence throughout the country in order to maintain and strengthen community engagement, provide reassurance to citizens and to deter crime. To make this a reality for all, the Government has in place a plan to achieve an overall Garda workforce of 21,000 personnel by 2021 comprising 15,000 Garda members, 2,000 Reserve members and 4,000 civilians. Funding has also been provided for the recruitment of 300 Garda Reserves.

This plan is progressing apace. I am informed by the Commissioner, since the reopening of the Garda College in September 2014, that almost 1,200 recruits have attested as members of An Garda Síochána and have been assigned to mainstream duties nationwide, 90 of whom were assigned to the DMR North Division respectively. I am also informed that a further four hundred Garda recruits are scheduled to attest later this year which will see Garda numbers, taking account of projected retirements, increase to around the 13,500 mark by year end - an increase of 500 since the end of 2016.

This focus on investment in personnel is critical. The moratorium on recruitment introduced in 2010 resulted in a significant reduction in the strength of An Garda Síochána. We are now rebuilding the organisation and providing the Commissioner with the resources needed to allow the deployment of increasing numbers of Gardaí across every Garda District, including the Ballymun District in the coming years.

Specifically in relation to serious crime and antisocial behaviour in the area concerned I am informed that the Ballymun STRIVE Pilot Project was set up in 2014 by representatives from the Local Drugs Task Force, An Garda Síochána, the Probation Service, the Irish Prison Service, Dublin City Council and the Ballymun Network. This project aims to address the behaviour of certain key individuals identified as adversely affecting the quality of life of people living in an area of Ballymun. It became operational in January 2015. It sought to tackle concerns arising from serious offending and anti-social behaviour, drug dealing related activity and general public order problems identified within the community of Ballymun. The pilot was envisaged to last for two years. I am informed that year one outcomes were promising with decreases in recorded anti-social crime and drugs related offences in the target area, which were greater than those seen in the rest of Ballymun. For individuals targeted the numbers of offences decreased from 82 in the year before the pilot commenced to 47 offences in 2015.

This pilot continued into year two and a final evaluation of the project is almost complete. It is hoped that the initial analysis, which showed that there were notable decreases in crime in the STRIVE area, will remain the case following the final evaluation. I look forward to reading the recommendations contained therein.