Matt Carthy has challenged the Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan over the lack of Gardaí available to police communities. Speaking during a Dáil debate on community safety and justice, the Cavan-Monaghan TD and Sinn Féin spokesperson on justice said there's a clear and ongoing issue regarding Garda numbers and Garda visibility.
Deputy Carthy said additional training places need to be put in place to deliver a force of 16,000 Gardaí. He said when Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael took office in June 2020, Garda numbers stood at 14,700. At the end of December 2024 the Garda strength was at 14,191, a drop of 3.5% over that period whereas the population of the state rose from 4.95m to 5.38m, an increase of 9%, in the same period.
Deputy Carthy said the lack of Gardai and the lack of Garda visibility has serious consequences. It impacts on people's sense of safety, on deterrence and on crime prevention. This week we saw CSO figures showing increases in a range of crimes, particularly burglaries. including violent burglaries, and theft.
