Gardaí braced for Traveller influx

AS gardaí draft in extra numbers and the Court Service and the HSE put in place special arrangements, tax-fearing wealthy Travellers will be giving the annual Christmas pilgrimage to Rathkeale a skip.

Dan Neville TD, who runs a constituency clinic in the town said that many of the prosperous Rathkeale Travellers based in Britain and Germany now stay away fearing they will be targeted by the Revenue Commissioners and the CAB.

Mr Neville said: “They are very wealthy and may not have their tax affairs in order.”

Despite a fall-off, it is expected that the population of Rathkeale will swell from 1,400 to more than 2,100 over the Christmas period.

The gardaí, Health Service Executive and the Court Service are putting in place special arrangements to cope with the Christmas Traveller bulge in the West Limerick town.

Extra garda resources will be drafted in and all leave in the Askeaton garda district, which covers Rathkeale, has been cancelled.

The Health Service Executive will provide extra staff at the town’s health centre.

And the local court will hold a special sitting on December 27 to deal with any problems while the visiting Travellers are still in town.

Supt Joe Roe said extra garda resources are deployed in Rathkeale to ensure that public order problems are dealt with and that vans and caravans don’t choke the main streets.

He said: “The Travellers will begin to arrive in big numbers over the next few weeks and they usually stay for up to two weeks. The special court which sits on December 27 has been put in place to deal with any possible offences involving Travellers while they are still in the jurisdiction.

“The first Rathkeale sitting after Christmas is scheduled for the second Tuesday of January.

“Over the past few years we have not had a lot of trouble as we have a lot of extra gardaí out on the street and leave in the district is only given in exceptional circumstances.”

Supt Roe said that some ‘high spiritness’ occurs when some people have too much drink taken.

He said: “Rathkeale is a huge gathering place for Travellers at this time of year.”

Dan Neville, TD, said the town’s propulsion rises by up to 40% at Christmas.

He said: “It is not as big as it used to be as some stay away because they are afraid of the taxman and the Criminal Assets Bureau. Some very prosperous travellers are reluctant to come back as their tax affairs may not be in order,’’ he said.

Mr Neville said the main problems stem from people pulling up in vans and blocking a street while they have a chat with somebody else driving in the opposite direction.