Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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131. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of vehicles in the Garda fleet; the number of vehicles brought into and taken out of service, respectively by vehicle type since 2011, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20660/18]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The Government's Capital Plan 2016 – 2021 provides €46 million for investment in the Garda fleet, to ensure that An Garda Síochána has a modern, effective and fit for purpose fleet and this is in addition to the investment of almost €30 million in the period 2013 to 2015. In total, in the period 2013 to 2017, almost €44 million has been invested in the fleet.

As the Deputy will appreciate, decisions in relation to the provision and allocation of Garda vehicles are a matter for the Garda Commissioner in light of his identified operational demands and the availability of resources. As Minister, I have no direct role in the matter.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the allocation of Garda vehicles is monitored and reviewed on a continual basis and that vehicles are allocated between districts as required by operational circumstances. I further understand that An Garda Síochána operate a comprehensive service repair and maintenance programme to ensure that all vehicles in the fleet are operating to manufacturers specifications.

The following tables outline the current strength of the Garda fleet, vehicles allocated to the fleet since 2011 and vehicles removed from the fleet since 2011, as confirmed by the Garda authorities.

Garda fleet as at 9 May 2018

Vehicles allocated to the Garda fleet 2011 to 9 May 2018

Vehicles removed from the Garda fleet 2011 to 9 May 2018

Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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132. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Garda personnel; the stations to which new recruits have been posted since 2016, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20661/18]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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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.

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. Where a deficiency in resources is identified the matter is considered fully and addressed accordingly.

I am further informed by the Commissioner that on the 31 March 2018, the latest date for which figures are readily available, the strength of An Garda Síochána was 13,667. There are also 567 Garda Reserves and more than 2,270 civilians attached to An Garda Síochána.

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 achieve this the Government has put in place a plan for an overall Garda workforce of 21,000 personnel by 2021 comprising 15,000 Garda members, 2,000 Reserve members and 4,000 civilians. We are making real, tangible progress on achieving this goal.

Since the reopening of the Garda College in September 2014, just under 1,800 recruits have attested as members of An Garda Síochána and have been assigned to mainstream duties nationwide. Garda numbers, taking account of retirements, increased to 13,551 at the end of 2017 – a net increase of over 600 since the end of 2016.

I am pleased that funding is in place to maintain this high level of investment in the Garda workforce to ensure that the vision of an overall workforce of 21,000 by 2021 remains on track. This year a further 800 new Garda Recruits will enter the Garda College, some 400 of whom have already done so. In total, 800 Garda trainees are scheduled to attest during the year which will see Garda numbers, taking account of projected retirements, reach 14,000 by the end of this year.

In addition, a further 500 civilians will also be recruited to fill critical skills gaps across the organisation and to facilitate the redeployment of Gardaí from administrative and technical duties to front-line operational duties. There are plans to strengthen the Garda Reserve with new Reserves expected to commence training in 2018.

In so far as the allocation of newly attested Gardaí is concerned, this is a matter for the Commissioner.  I am assured by the Commissioner that the needs of all Garda Divisions are fully considered when determining the allocation of resources. However, it is important to keep in mind that newly attested Gardaí have a further 16 months of practical and class-room based training to complete in order to receive their BA in Applied Policing.  To ensure that they are properly supported and supervised and have opportunities to gain the breadth of policing experience required, the Commissioner's policy is to allocate them to specially designated training stations which have the required training and development structures and resources in place, including trained Garda tutors and access to a permanently appointed supervisory Sergeant who is thoroughly familiar with their responsibilities under the training programme.

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 deploy increasing numbers of Gardaí across every Division.

For the Deputy's information I have set out in the following table the Garda stations to which new recruits have been allocated to from 2016 to date in 2018 as advised by the Commissioner. 

Probationer Garda Allocations by Division and Station 2016 - 2018