Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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110. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of gardaí in the country in each of the past five years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16903/22]

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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120. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number and grade of gardaí by Garda division and county, in tabular form. [17092/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 110 and 120 together.

The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs, with the unprecedented allocation provided in Budget 2022 of over €2 billion. This includes funding for the recruitment of up to an additional 800 Garda members and up to 400 Garda staff. It should be noted that many of the Garda members to be recruited will be drawn from the recent Garda recruitment competition which closed on 16 March. I note the strong interest in this campaign, with over 10,000 applications received.

Additionally, over 800 Garda members have also been redeployed in recent years from administrative duties to frontline policing roles where their expertise can be utilised fully.

As the Deputy will be aware, in accordance with the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, which includes decisions on the distribution of personnel among the various Garda Divisions. As Minister, I have no direct role in these matters.

I am assured that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of policing priorities and crime trends, to ensure their optimum use. Therefore, the full complement of resources fluctuates at any given time and where a deficiency in resources is identified the matter is considered fully and addressed accordingly.

I understand that it is a matter for the Divisional Chief Superintendent to determine the optimum distribution of duties among the personnel available to them, having regard to the profile of each area within the Division and its specific needs.

In the interest of transparency, the information sought by the Deputy is made publicly available by both An Garda Síochána and my Department. Detailed information in relation to Garda numbers is available on my Department’s website and this information is updated every month with the latest data provided by An Garda Síochána, and includes the number of Gardaí by station across the whole country.

The information can be found at the following link:

www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/An_Garda_Siochana_facts_and_figures