Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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22. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the Garda numbers, by rank, in Cork city and Cork county, in tabular form. [24171/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Government is committed to building stronger, safer communities and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda Síochána is central to this policy. Since 2015, the Government has increased the budget of An Garda Síochána by approximately €672m, or 46%. This has allowed for sustained and ongoing recruitment and investment in new equipment and new vehicles.

As the Deputy will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including for the recruitment, training and deployment of Garda members. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.

The Government’s commitment to investing in the Gardaí is reflected in an allocation of over €2 billion in Budget 2023.

This level of funding provides for a steady pipeline of new Gardaí in the coming years, supporting the recruitment of up to 1,000 Gardaí and 400 additional Garda staff this year, with new recruits to enter the Garda College approximately every 11 weeks.

I am assured that the Commissioner keeps the allocation of these resources under continued review, in line with crime and population trends, to ensure their optimum use.

I am also informed by the Garda authorities that, as of end of April 2023, a total of 707 Garda members were assigned to Cork City which represents an increase of almost 9% since end December 2015.

As of the same date there were 329 Garda members assigned to Cork North which represents an increase of over 10% since end December 2015.

Cork West has also seen a 3% increase in the number of Gardaí assigned since 2015. At end of April 2023 there were 283 members assigned to the division.

The table below sets out the number of Garda staff members assigned to the Cork divisions at end of December 2015 and end of March 2023, the latest date for which figures are available.

This increase in Garda staff numbers means that as well as new Gardaí assigned to the Division, additional Gardaí can be redeployed from administrative to operational policing duties, where their training and policing expertise can be used to best effect.

For the Deputy's information, detailed statistics on Garda workforce numbers are published on gov.ie and are updated regularly by my Department from information provided by An Garda Síochána. The statistics can be accessed using the following link:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/bd777-an-garda-siochana-your-police-service-some-facts-and-figures/

Coupled with further reassignments of Gardaí to operational frontline policing and the continued roll out of the new Operating Model with its core focus on community policing, I am confident that the Commissioner has suitable resources and plans in place to continue to deliver on An Garda Síochána's mission of keeping people safe.