Written answers

Wednesday, 19 March 2025

Department of Justice and Equality

An Garda Síochána

Photo of Eoghan KennyEoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1170. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of new Gardaí assigned to each station in County Cork, following the recent assignment of Gardaí, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11982/25]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business under Section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), including the recruitment and training of Garda members and staff. Under Section 33 of the Act, the Commissioner is responsible for the distribution and stationing of Gardaí throughout the State. As Minister, I play no role in these independent functions.

There are almost 18,000 Garda members, staff and reserve within the Garda organisation and the Government is committed to seeing these numbers grow. 149 Probationer Gardaí attested on 7 March and have been assigned to operational duties in Garda stations across the State. This includes 3 Probationers assigned to Cork City Division and 4 assigned to Cork County Division.

Another 201 trainee Gardaí entered Templemore on 10 March, the largest intake since the lifting of public health restrictions.

Over €2.4 billion has been allocated to the Garda budget in 2025 and this funding will provide for further recruitment of Garda members and staff. The most recent Garda recruitment campaign closed at the end of February with over 6,700 applicants seeking to join the service.

In the interest of transparency, figures related to the Garda workforce are published on my Department's website. This information is supplied by An Garda Síochána, is operational and subject to change. These figures are regularly updated by my Department, upon receipt of the information from the Garda authorities.

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

To be of assistance to the Deputy, the allocation of Probationer Gardaí by station is available at:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/7c2e6-probationer-gardai/

Photo of Donna McGettiganDonna McGettigan (Clare, Sinn Fein)
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1171. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the current ratio of Gardaí, per 1,000 of population in the State; the current ratio per 1,000 population in Shannon town; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12004/25]

Photo of Jim O'CallaghanJim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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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 engage regularly with him to ensure our Gardaí have the resources they need. I am assured that the Commissioner keeps the allocation of these resources under continual review.

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
I am advised by the Garda authorities that as of 31 January 2025, there was a total of 14,167 Garda members nationwide.

In the interest of transparency, information in relation to the allocation of Gardaí by Division and Station up to the end of 2024, including a breakdown of the number of Gardaí in the DMR Divisions, is publicly available and can be found at the following link:

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

Census 2022 conducted by the CSO reported a national population of 5,149,139. This suggests a ratio of 2.8 Gardai per thousand people based on the Garda nationwide workforce as of 31 January 2025.

Census 2022 reported a population in Shannon of 10,256 indicating a ratio of 5.7 Gardai per thousand people as 58 Gardaí are assigned to Shannon as of 31 January 2025.

These figures are operational and subject to change.

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