Sinn Féin spokesperson on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Matt Carthy TD, has said that the fact that 1,640 Gardaí are eligible to retire in the next five years is a cause for concern for Garda numbers.

Teachta Carthy said that Garda visibility remains a significant problem within many communities but that there is no sign that the government has a plan to address the issue. He was speaking after receiving a reply to a Parliamentary Question on the matter from the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration.

Teachta said:

“As we have seen over recent weeks there is a serious problem around the lack of Gardaí available to police our cities, towns and rural communities. This is causing real concerns around public safety and people’s sense of safety. I raised this issue directly with the Minister this week. Part of the problem is a lack of Garda visibility and the reason for that is that we have too few Gardaí. Garda numbers are nowhere near adequate.

“The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O’Callaghan has informed me that 1,640 Gardaí are eligible to retire in the next five years. Given the current shortfall in terms of Gardaí and even with current recruitment campaigns this potential level of retirement in the next five years is a matter of serious concern.

“There is a clear need to increase the intake capacity for Garda training as a matter of urgency and to plan for the fact that 1,640 are eligible to retire by 2030.

“This plan must include consideration of Sinn Féin’s proposal to open a second Garda training college and early engagement with Gardaí that are eligible to retire, and their representative bodies, to identify initiatives aimed at retaining as many of these personnel as possible.”