Latest recruitment announcement 'will not alleviate chronic shortage of gardaí'
The President of the AGSI said today that the latest round of garda recruitment will do little to ease pressures on the front line.
Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald announced earlier that 250 new gardaí would be recruited this year, bringing to 550 the number of new recruits since the lifting of a recruitment embargo in September.
Speaking at the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (ASGI) conference, Tim Galvin said it will have little overall effect on policing.
“The Association welcomes these recruits, and looks forward to fresh faces coming on to units across the country, in the hope that it would reinvigorate the members on the front line,” he said.
“However, it will not help to alleviate the chronic shortage of people available to frontline policing.”
Minister Fitzgerald made the announcement at the ASGI’s annual conference today.
"I'm delighted to be able to announce this morning that there will be 250 new recruits into Templemore," she said.
"Templemore effectively closed to garda recruitment in 2009, and we now have 550 new gardaí who have been recruited.
"There's huge interest, obviously, amongst the public in becoming a gardaí and joining the force - and I think that speaks for itself."
Garda training takes two years to complete, but even then, it could be some time before the force feels staff pressures ease.
Since the ban on recruitment, garda numbers have dwindled to their lowest level in over a decade – and currently stand 12,800.
AGSI management want at least 14,000 officers, but ASGI General-Secretary John Redmond nevertheless welcomed the announcement.
"We're delighted that the minister has chosen our conference to make this announcement," he said.
"As you know, our delegates have said there should be a minimum number of between 13 and 14,000".
"You also heard garda managers say yesterday evening that we need 325 per year just to keep still and keep up with retirements and what have you".
"So we’re delighted that 250 are now going to be going into the garda college hopefully within the next few months - and we also have...299 on the way out very shortly as well.”
