Written answers

Wednesday, 19 January 2022

Department of Justice and Equality

An Garda Síochána

Photo of Catherine MurphyCatherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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1242. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of full-time gardaí that are suspended; the duration of their suspension including the year in which it commenced; and the maximum duration that a member of An Garda Síochána can be suspended for. [1139/22]

Photo of Helen McEnteeHelen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will appreciate, disciplinary matters within An Garda Síochána are governed by the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) and the Garda Síochána (Discipline) Regulations 2007, as amended by the Garda Síochána (Discipline) (Amendment) Regulations 2011, and are a matter for the Garda Commissioner. As Minister, I have no role in these independent functions.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the table below sets out the number of full-time Gardaí that are suspended and the duration of their suspension including the year in which it commenced.

Length of time member suspended Number of members suspended
Less than 1 year 39
Between 1 and 2 years 32
Between 2 and 3 years 9
Between 3 and 4 years 4
Between 5 and 8 years 3
*Total  87

* This total does not include Garda Reserves

I am informed by the Garda authorities that there is no maximum duration that a member of An Garda Síochána can be suspended for, as each case is different and has to be decided on its merits. Each suspension is reviewed on a regular basis for any changes in circumstances. Some members are before the courts and are awaiting dates for trials and therefore discipline investigations have to be put into abeyance, pending conclusion of the criminal proceedings. In other cases discipline investigations are ongoing or the case may be subject to a hearing before a Board of Inquiry or Appeal Board, which all impact on suspensions.

I am advised that in all cases where a member of An Garda Síochána is suspended, they are informed of the reason(s) for the suspension. The suspended member is informed of the availability of the Garda Employee Assistance Service and given contact details by a Liaison Officer. Upon suspension, the member is served with a notice which sets out the conditions attached to the suspension and the entitlements or otherwise of the suspended member.

Photo of Claire KerraneClaire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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1243. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of complaints of rape that were reported to An Garda Síochána in 2020 and 2021; and the number of complaints of other types of sexual assault by year, type of complaint and by Garda division in tabular form. [1183/22]

Photo of Helen McEnteeHelen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I want to thank the Deputy for raising this issue and to reiterate that the prevalence of sexual offences is of particular concern to me, and this Government.

The No Excuses campaign that my Department ran from 2019 until the end of 2021 underpins the message that sexual harassment and sexual violence will not be tolerated. It highlights that, as a society, we all have a role to play in preventing sexual harassment and sexual violence.

We are currently in the process of developing a further campaign to raise awareness of the meaning and importance of consent.

As the Deputy will be aware, through the Justice Plan and Supporting a Victim’s Journey, I am working to reform the criminal justice system at every point in which a victim comes into contact with it, and to help victims and vulnerable witnesses in sexual violence cases

To date, a number of key actions have been delivered as part of implementing Supporting a Victim’s Journey including:

- Legislating for the introduction of preliminary trial hearings;

- The nationwide rollout of Divisional Protective Services Units (DPSU);

- The first cohort of staff at a new sexual offences unit in the Director of Public Prosecutions office formally took up their roles in April;

- Work to advance the training for all personnel who come into contact with vulnerable victims is underway

The Department has also agreed to the development and delivery of a significant new national survey on the prevalence of sexual violence in Ireland by the CSO. It will look in detail at the experience of sexual violence and abuse for both women and men in Ireland.

As requested, here - in tabular form - is the number of crime incidents recorded by An Garda Síochána classified as rape or sexual assault by Garda Division for Q1 2020 to Q3 2021. These figures are the latest available from the Central Statistics Office. 

Please note that these statistics are categorised as Statistics Under Reservation by the CSO 

Statistic Type of Offence UNIT 2020Q1 2020Q2 2020Q3 2020Q4 2021Q1 2021Q2 2021Q3
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Rape of a male or female Number 183 186 219 194 170 200 269
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Defilement of a boy or girl less than 17 years old Number 53 58 73 44 49 52 25
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Sexual offence involving mentally impaired person Number 3 3 3 3 1 4 4
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Aggravated sexual assault Number 0 1 2 1 2 0 0
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Sexual assault (not aggravated) Number 405 368 411 351 462 491 469
Rape and Sexual Assault 644 616 708 593 684 747 767
Recorded Crime Offences Under Reservation Other sexual offences Number 89 124 133 107 126 165 117
Total Sexual offences 733 740 841 700 810 912 884

This further table shows a breakdown by Garda Division, as requested, over the same time period for rape and sexual assault. 

Statistic Garda Division Type of Offence UNIT 2020Q1 2020Q2 2020Q3 2020Q4 2021Q1 2021Q2 2021Q3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cavan/Monaghan Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 15 11 11 8 21 26 24
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Donegal Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 25 22 25 27 24 25 30
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Sligo/Leitrim Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 13 15 23 8 17 20 16
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Louth Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 27 21 24 24 16 32 29
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Clare Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 9 7 15 9 9 14 11
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Mayo Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 11 17 15 12 14 14 14
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Galway Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 21 42 30 30 28 32 49
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Roscommon/Longford Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 10 9 9 15 18 7 11
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork City Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 37 33 40 39 38 44 41
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork North Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 15 14 12 21 17 20 20
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork West Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 12 6 7 13 11 26 16
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kerry Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 19 19 19 12 15 22 24
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Limerick Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 31 23 39 16 17 39 39
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Laois/Offaly Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 30 23 25 16 26 28 18
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Meath Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 16 20 12 23 19 27 23
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Wicklow Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 17 18 27 22 22 17 18
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Westmeath Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 16 11 13 14 19 11 14
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kildare Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 23 26 23 17 33 27 35
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Tipperary Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 19 22 21 18 26 23 20
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Wexford Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 26 17 22 25 30 26 28
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kilkenny/Carlow Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 38 39 32 24 27 28 14
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Waterford Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 21 20 27 14 20 21 30
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. South Central Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 38 24 32 24 29 31 40
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. North Central Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 19 24 30 24 19 33 49
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Northern Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 41 34 50 41 34 29 58
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Southern Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 36 34 30 35 66 42 33
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Eastern Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 19 20 39 24 23 30 25
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Western Garda Division Rape and sexual assault Number 40 45 56 38 46 53 38
644 616 708 593 684 747 767

This final table shows 'other sexual offences' by Garda Division over the same time period.

Statistic Garda Division Type of Offence UNIT 2020Q1 2020Q2 2020Q3 2020Q4 2021Q1 2021Q2 2021Q3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cavan/Monaghan Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 3 7 9 1 6 8 5
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Donegal Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 1 2 4 3 8 5 8
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Sligo/Leitrim Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 0 0 1 3 1 9 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Louth Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 3 2 5 2 8 4 4
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Clare Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 1 3 3 4 7 2 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Mayo Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 3 7 4 1 2 6 6
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Galway Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 6 7 8 7 4 6 6
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Roscommon/Longford Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 1 3 2 3 2 3 1
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork City Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 6 9 9 10 2 9 6
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork North Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 2 3 7 2 5 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Cork West Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 3 2 1 2 8 1
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kerry Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 4 3 2 1 2 3 3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Limerick Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 5 9 7 4 3 5 4
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Laois/Offaly Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 1 1 8 6 2 0 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Meath Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 3 7 5 5 8 6 3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Wicklow Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 3 3 4 3 2 6 8
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Westmeath Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 4 3 0 1 4 0
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kildare Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 7 2 6 6 9 7
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Tipperary Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 2 2 4 2 7 3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Wexford Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 0 2 8 6 7 6 7
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Kilkenny/Carlow Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 4 2 2 5 4 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation Waterford Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 2 1 1 4 1 5
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. South Central Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 5 2 2 4 2 2
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. North Central Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 2 1 5 3 4 4 5
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Northern Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 6 6 13 7 10 18 6
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Southern Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 6 4 7 2 7 8 4
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Eastern Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 4 4 4 1 3 5 3
Recorded Crime Offences under Reservation D.M.R. Western Garda Division Other sexual offences Number 15 15 8 12 12 12 10
89 124 133 107 126 165 117

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