Farming special - Day 4: 40% believe gardaí not doing enough in rural areas

Just half of farmers think gardaí are doing a good job policing rural Ireland, with a majority saying they are not a visible presence on country roads.

The Irish Examiner/ICMSA farming survey reveals that, with 95 rural Garda Stations having closed last year, just 48% of farmers feels that gardaí are doing a good job policing rural Ireland. In fact, two-in-five farmers feel that gardaí are not doing a good job.

Women are more dubious of the performance of rural gardaí that men, with just 44% of them feeling gardaí were performing well, compared to 50% of men, with just 39% of tillage farmers of the opinion that rural policing was adequate.