Concerns over loss of Garda protection

THE cash-in-transit industry is “gravely concerned” Garda protection could be curtailed because of budgetary cutbacks.

One of the main companies in the trade said they could not afford to lose Garda escorts at a time criminal gangs were becoming more ruthless.

Alan Jordan, country manager for Brinks Ireland, said the Government should consider “long and hard” the possible consequences of reducing Garda cover.

His comments come a week after crime figures recorded a massive jump in the number of cash-in-transit raids in the last quarter.

There were 12 such heists between July and September, the highest quarterly figure for three years.

It brought the annual total for the year ending September to 27, compared to 21 for the previous 12 months.

“The gardaí are a necessary source of protection both for our staff and the liability that we carry,” said Mr Jordan.

“Nonetheless, our industry is gravely concerned that the protection provided to the industry from the gardaí — escorts, intelligence gathering and police operations — could be curtailed by the Government due to the current planned budgetary constraints.”

Garda overtime took a massive hit in the budget, dropping from an allocation of €108 million in 2008 to €80m in 2009.

However, the cut will be even greater, as the actual expenditure for 2008 is expected to reach €120m.

This will mean a final cut of 33% in the overtime budget.

Justice Minister Dermot Ahern said he had ringfenced €21m out of the €80m for Operation Anvil, which is aimed at gangland crime. This indicates other operations may be hit.

It is not known if Operation Discovery will be affected. This initiative targets armed robbery gangs.

“Cutting the budget for the gardaí, forcing the organisation to reduce manpower, hours and resources could have a knock-on effect for the CIT [cash-in-transit] industry and the smooth running of the economy as a whole,” said Mr Jordan.

In an analysis in SecureView, the journal of the Irish Security Industry Association, he said criminals were becoming more ruthless.

He said the attack profile had improved in Ireland between 2004 and 2007.

Mr Jordan said Ireland was ranked as the country most at risk in Europe in 2004 with every third vehicle on the island being attacked, compared to the European average of one in every 13 vehicles.

Ireland dropped to eight position in 2007, with one attack in every 13 vehicles.