Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 February 2025
823. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Justice if he will provide a breakdown of the number of Gardaí, by rank, in the organisation; the number of Garda reservists; and the number of civilian staff, by grade, as of 29 January 2025. [3010/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the administration and management of An Garda Síochána, including the distribution of Garda members between the different Garda units and Divisions. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.
The Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. The Garda Vote in Budget 2025 saw unprecedented funding of over €2.48 billion for this year, a 27% increase since 2020 which is supporting the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff.
While the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the allocation of Garda resources, I look forward to engaging regularly with him to ensure our Gardaí have the resources they need. I am informed that when allocating and transferring Garda members to and from any Division, consideration is given to commitments and undertakings outlined in the Annual Policing Plan.
I understand that the requirements of all Garda Divisions nationwide are also taken into account, which include:
• Local and national crime trends and workloads;
• Policing arrangements and operational strategies;
• Minimum establishment statistics;
• Local population and trends, geographical area and size;
• Transfer applications, including welfare, personnel issues and concerns.
I am advised by the Garda authorities that as of 31 December 2024, the latest date for which figures are available, there was a total of 14,191 Garda members nationwide.
I am further advised that as of the same date there are 3,501 (WTE) Garda staff working alongside Garda members, an increase of 12% since the end of December 2022. Garda staff carry out vital roles to increase availability of Gardaí to focus on frontline duties. The significant increase in Garda staff across the country in recent years has enabled Gardaí to be freed up for frontline duties.
I am also informed that at the end of December 2024 there were 319 Garda Reserves nationwide. The Deputy may also be aware that a competition to recruit new Garda Reserves was launched by the Garda authorities in 2024, and attracted around 1,800 applications.
In the interest of transparency, the number of Garda members by rank, the number of Garda Reserves and the number of Garda staff, at the end of December 2024, is published on my Department's website. Please be advised that these figures are operational and may be subject to change.
https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/bd777-an-garda-siochana-your-police-service-some-facts-and-figures/
Further for the Deputy’s information, detailed statistics relating to the breakdown of civilian staff by grade, are publicly available and can be found in the Garda Commissioner reports to the Policing Authority on the Garda website at the following link: Commissioner's Monthly Reports to Policing Authority - Garda
