John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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290. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of motorbikes purchased for the roads policing unit of An Garda Síochána in each of the years 2016 to 2018 and to date in 2019, in tabular form; and the number that were withdrawn from the fleet during same period. [8207/19]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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There has been unprecedented investment in Garda resources across the State in recent years.

In relation to Garda vehicles, €46 million has been provided by the Government for investment in the Garda fleet between 2016 and 2021, to ensure that An Garda Síochána has a modern, effective and fit-for-purpose fleet allowing Gardaí to be mobile, visible and responsive on the roads and in the community to prevent and tackle crime. This is in addition to the investment of almost €30 million in the Garda fleet in the period 2013 to 2015. I am pleased to confirm that a capital allocation of €10 million is available to An Garda Síochána for the purchase of Garda vehicles in 2019.

The Deputy will appreciate that the Garda Commissioner is responsible for managing and controlling generally the administration and business of An Garda Síochána. This includes responsibility for the distribution of Garda resources, including allocation of Garda vehicles among the various Garda divisions. As Minister, I have no role in that matter. I understand however that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities so as to ensure that their optimum use.

For the Deputy's information, the following table, provided to me by the Garda authorities, sets out the number of motorbikes purchased and allocated to Roads Policing in the years requested and the number of motorbikes withdrawn from the fleet over the same period.