Recruitment drive for Garda reserve force is delayed
The recruitment drive for the new Garda reserve force, which was due to begin at the end of May, is suffering setbacks.
Michael McDowell originally said the advertising campaign would begin in late May after the Oireachtas Committee on Justice approved the implementation of regulations for the force.
The Garda reserves are intended to act as a back-up force to full-time gardaí and will assist them in their functions
The force is eventually expected to number 4,000 and is supported by Garda superintendents, but opposed by rank-and-file gardaí.
A Garda spokesperson has confirmed that the recruitment drive for the first 900 members will not now begin until July at the earliest.
The GRA and the AGSI are declining to comment on this latest development, saying they do not want to add to the pressure on Michael McDowell in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on statutory rape.
