Cutting gardaí to 13,000 ‘will hurt public’

GOVERNMENT plans to cut the Garda force to 13,000 will lead to increased attacks on the public, according to the organisation which represents rank and file gardaí.

The Garda Representative Association (GRA) says it is seriously concerned that such a reduction in numbers will play into the hands of criminals and put the public and gardaí themselves at increasing risk of serious attacks.

GRA president Damien McCarthy said that it was only a few years ago that various political parties were advocating the force’s strength should be increased to 16,000.

Just 18 months ago there were 14,500 gardaí, but that figure is reducing all the time and there are currently up to 800 officers who are eligible for retirement.

Garda McCarthy said he feared a lot of them would now leave the force because of reduced pay and increasing stress levels.

He said the main theme of the 33rd annual GRA conference, which starts in Westport, Co Mayo, today, would be to emphasise to the public how slashing the garda budget would affect their ability to safeguard ordinary decent people.

“If the Government plans are implemented, it will have a significant impact on service delivery. We won’t be able to cope,” Garda McCarthy said.

He said nobody in power had examined the severe consequences of reducing numbers so fast, and called for “a stress test to be carried out” on the force, similar to those carried out on the banks.

“We can’t afford to let the criminal fraternity have a free hand. There’s no let up in crime,” Garda McCarthy said.

He said specialist units such as the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation were already “snowed under” with work and decreasing the force’s strength would lessen the effectiveness of many other units.

GRA assistant general secretary John Healy said his organisation had called on numerous previous ministers for justice to carry out a survey to see exactly what numbers were needed to adequately police the country.

He said he had no objection to it being done independently and was confident it would show that more personnel were required.

The GRA will today formally request Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan to speak out on behalf of the force and to tell those in government that he needs more resources.

Meanwhile, the group is also seeking changes to the law to make attacks on gardaí punishable by increased prison sentences.

Garda McCarthy said the law doesn’t differentiate between attacks on the public and attacks on police, as it does in the US and Britain. He called for similar legislation here.

On average there are two serious attacks on gardaí every day.

He said he would “definitely” like to see mandatory life sentences imposed for manslaughter of a member of the force.

The GRA is also seeking legal protection for its members who come under investigation by the Garda Ombudsman Commission.