SF calls for more gardaí

Carrigaline has the fourth lowest garda numbers in the State, the Sinn Féin (SF) party in Cork said this week.

Sinn Féin’s Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire TD has called on the Minister for Justice to increase garda numbers for Carrigaline “as an urgent priority”.

He was speaking after identifying that of all large towns across the State, with a population of over 10,00, Carrigaline had the fourth lowest garda numbers with the number of gardaí serving Carrigaline decreasing over the past year.

The Cork South Central TD said: “The stats show that there are only 20 gardaí serving the over 15,000 people of Carrigaline. That is three less gardaí, compared to this time last year.

“Of all the large towns in the state, only three towns fare worse in terms of garda numbers – Skerries in Dublin and Maynooth and Celbridge in Kildare, which are only 6km from each other in any event. It makes sense that the number of gardaí should reflect the population of the town. Yet, when we look at towns of a similar size to Carrigaline, they have significantly more garda resources.”

He added: “Leixlip for example, has a slightly lower population than Carrigaline, but has four times the number of gardaí.

“The community in Carrigaline have been calling out for increased garda resources for a number of years now. It is shocking, that instead of increasing the resources for the town, Carrigaline has actually lost three of its gardaí over the past year.”

“Evidence shows that visibility of gardaí is crucial to tackle crime. We need resources to ensure crime that is happening is tackled head on, and to prevent crime occurring in the first instance. However, with the current ratios, there is only 1 garda for every 788 people living in Carrigaline,” concluded the TD.

Sinn Féin Area Rep for Carrigaline, Eoghan Fahy, said: “Carrigaline is a vibrant, rapidly-growing community. There are many committed gardaí of all ranks and community gardaí that I know are endeavouring to respond to incidents as soon as possible. However, despite their best efforts locally, the fact is that gardaí are not getting the resources they deserve.

“It is only fair that every community feels secure, and that their gardaí have the appropriate resources to ensure the safety of the people of their town.”