Review may shut Garda stations

THE CLOSURE of some Garda stations was under consideration, Minister for Justice Alan Shatter told the Dáil.

He said it would be dealt with by the Garda Commissioner as an operational matter. “He may also have to consider, in appropriate cases, whether a better policing service could be delivered to a local community by having gardaí out on patrol instead of in a station,” Mr Shatter added.

He said he looked forward to receiving the commissioner’s proposals, which would be aimed at maximising the efficiency of the force and giving priority to operational frontline policing services.

Mr Shatter said that under plans agreed by the previous government, as part of the EU-IMF agreement, Garda numbers were due to be reduced to 13,000 by 2014. The anticipated reduction by the end of this year was to 13,500. “As part of this process, the commissioner will, of course, have to examine every option for increased efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of services,” he added.

Fianna Fáil spokesman on justice Dara Calleary said he accepted it was the previous government’s decision to agree to the reduction of numbers, but it was done on the basis of record investment over a long number of years.

Newspaper reports, he said, suggested that in Donegal alone 24 stations would close.