Alan Dillon
Question:522. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Justice to provide an update on the increase in the number of gardaí this year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34133/23]
View answerTuesday, 11 July 2023
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Written answers
As the Deputy will be aware the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the recruitment and retention of Garda members. As Minister I regularly engage with the Commissioner to ensure An Garda Síochána has the necessary resources to deliver on the level of recruitment to keep people safe.
As of the end of May 2023, there were 13,927 Garda members across the country. This represents an increase of over 8% since 2015 when there were 12,816 Garda members throughout the country.
The unprecedented €2 billion plus budget in 2023 is allowing for the continued recruitment of Gardaí and Garda staff and we are seeing Garda recruits enter Templemore every 11 weeks. 92 recruits entered the Training College late November, 135 in February and another 154 in May. Another class will enter the college at the end of July.
An Garda Síochána also recently launched a new recruitment campaign, which closed on 14 April 2023 and in combination with those who have deferred, will provide a stream of candidates for the next and future intakes.
This year’s campaign, which was shorter in duration than the 2022 campaign, has attracted 4,973 applicants. This level of interest is in line with 2019, the last pre-COVID recruitment campaign, and demonstrates the demand to join AGS is as strong as ever.
The next Garda recruitment competition is expected to take place later this year or early next year, which will further secure a strong pipeline of candidates.