Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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779. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Gardaí assigned to each Garda station in County Donegal, per electoral area, in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2198/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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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 the distribution of Garda members between the different Garda units and Divisions. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.

The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. The Garda Vote in Budget 2025 saw unprecedented funding of over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 which is supporting the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.

While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, I look forward to engaging regularly with him to ensure our Gardaí have the resources they need. I am informed that when allocating and transferring Garda members to and from any Division, consideration is given to commitments and undertakings outlined in the Annual Policing Plan and priorities as determined in delivering ‘A Policing Service for The Future’.

I understand that the requirements of all Garda Divisions nationwide are also taken into account, which include:

• Local and national crime trends and workloads;
• Policing arrangements and operational strategies;
• Minimum establishment statistics;
• Local population and trends, geographical area and size;
• Transfer applications, including welfare, personnel issues and concerns.

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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780. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of Garda public order operators level 2 training courses that were held for Gardaí within the Clare division in 2022, 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2226/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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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 the distribution of Garda members between the different Garda units and Divisions. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.

The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. The Garda Vote in Budget 2025 saw unprecedented funding of over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 which is supporting the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.

While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, I look forward to engaging regularly with him to ensure our Gardaí have the resources they need.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that Gardaí with specialist training in public order policing perform duty with the Public Order Unit to provide tactical support as well as a graduated policing response to appropriate incidents, while effectively assisting frontline Gardaí.

These Garda members are only required to perform public order duties when operational demands require their deployment, otherwise they are engaged in routine policing duties. The Garda National Public Order Unit, (GNPOU), is not a full-time unit. Members trained in public order are deployed from across the organisation for operational requirements when the need arises.

The table below lists the numbers of Public Order Operators courses that were held for Gardaí within the Clare/Tipperary Division in the years outlined:

I can inform the Deputy that there were 14 members from Clare/Tipperary Division certified in this course in 2023 and 38 certified in 2024.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that training courses available from the Garda College are provided on the basis of need, and with regard to the operational requirements of the Garda organisation.

Erin McGreehan (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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781. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of gardaí in County Louth in the years 2022, 2023 and 2024. [2268/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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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 the distribution of Garda members between the different Garda units and Divisions. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.

The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. An Garda Síochána's budget allocation is over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 which is supporting the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.

While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, I look forward to engaging regularly with him to ensure our Gardaí have the resources they need. I am informed that when allocating and transferring Garda members to and from any Division, consideration is given to commitments and undertakings outlined in the Annual Policing Plan.

I understand that the requirements of all Garda Divisions nationwide are also taken into account, which include:

• Local and national crime trends and workloads;
• Policing arrangements and operational strategies;
• Minimum establishment statistics;
• Local population and trends, geographical area and size;
• Transfer applications, including welfare, personnel issues and concerns.

Erin McGreehan (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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782. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of full- and part-time Garda stations in County Louth. [2269/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business under Section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), which includes the management of the Garda Estate. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.

The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. An Garda Síochána's budget allocation is over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 which is supporting the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that there are a total of 13 Garda Stations in County Louth. Two Garda Stations are open to the public 24 hours a day in County Louth, and the remaining 11 stations are open to the public on a part-time basis.

In the interest of transparency, information in relation to the opening hours of individual Garda Stations is publicly available and can be found at the following link:

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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783. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the current number of Garda reserves; how many of these are waiting to be trained; the average wait time between when they are recruited and when they begin training; the average wait time between when they are recruited and when they complete training; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2275/25]

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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784. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the measures he will take to increase Garda reserve intake beyond the current intake annually; the annual planned increase, as outlined in the Programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2276/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 783 and 784 together.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business under section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended). The Commissioner is also responsible for the Garda Reserve under the Garda Síochána (Reserve Members) Regulations 2024. As Minister, I have no role in the recruitment or training process for the Reserve.

Garda Reserves bring a variety of experiences and perspectives to An Garda Síochána, including local knowledge and links to the communities in which they serve, which brings to life An Garda Síochána’s core value of community policing.

The most recent Garda Reserve recruitment campaign closed on 4 July 2024. I am advised by the Garda authorities that the competition attracted around 1,800 initial applications. The first names of candidates successful at interview were provided by publicjobs to An Garda Síochána in August 2024. All successful candidates are progressing through the vetting and medical stages. As these processes are completed, training will commence.

As of the end of 2024, the latest date for when figures are available, there was a total of 319 Garda Reserves nationwide.

As the Deputy may be aware, in the interest of transparency, information in relation to the breakdown of Garda Reserve nationally, is publicly available and can be found at the following link:

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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785. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality for an update on the commitment to increase the Garda training allowance; how much this increase will be; what it will be benchmarked against; and the expected timeline for delivery. [2277/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I can assure the Deputy that the Government is committed to building stronger, safer communities and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda Síochána is central to this policy. This commitment is demonstrated by the unprecedented provision of more than €2.48bn in Budget 2025.

This funding will support the recruitment of new Garda members, Garda staff and Garda Reserves, and reflects the Government’s commitment to supporting all parts of the organisation.

The Government is taking a number of steps to accelerate recruitment into An Garda Síochána.

A new Garda recruitment campaign opens this week and I encourage anyone who believes they can make a positive contribution as a Garda to consider applying.

Legislative changes to the Admissions and Appointments Regulations in late 2023 mean that candidates up to the age of 50 can now apply to the Garda Trainee Recruitment Campaign.

The Garda Trainee allowance increased from €305 to €354 per week with effect from 1 October 2024 and has increased by a total of €170 per week when compared with 2023.

Insofar as further increases to the allowance are concerned, these will be considered in the context of the Estimates process.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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786. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to the commitment in the Programme for Government to increased commitment at Templemore, what new measures will be taken to increase capacity; the current capacity; what he expects it to increase to; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2278/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The Government is committed to building stronger, safer communities, and strengthening An Garda Síochána is at the core of that. We will continue to provide An Garda Síochána with the resources it needs to ensure communities around Ireland are safe and feel safe, including to invest in recruitment, in equipment and technology and in buildings. This is reflected in the unprecedented allocation of over €2.48 billion to An Garda Síochána, in Budget 2025, a 27% increase since 2020. This funding allows for the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.

A group was established last year to review Garda Trainee recruitment and training capacity and is chaired at Deputy Secretary General level by my Department. The matters raised by the Deputy are being considered as part of that process. As such, a detailed estimate of potential costs associated with expanding the current capacity to provide training for Garda Trainees is not available at this time.

As the Deputy will appreciate, the priorities in the Programme for Government have been agreed by the new Government and I look forward to delivering on the Justice agenda contained within the Programme.

Work to progress these commitments has commenced, however the Deputy will appreciate that timelines or operational details on proposals are not yet available until work programmes are agreed.