Government formation: No targets on garda recruitment numbers - despite featuring in manifestos

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The Programme for Government backs ongoing recruitment of gardaí – but has removed previous targets set by the two big parties.

The outgoing Government set a target of 15,000 gardaí by the end of 2021, a commitment repeated by Fine Gael in its election manifesto.

With a budget of €115m in its election manifesto, Fianna Fáil set a target of 16,000 gardaí, although it did not say by when.

The Green Party set no targets in its manifesto.

The programme simply states: “Continue to train new recruits annually.”

With Garda HQ saying that only 275 will be recruited in 2020, because of the Covid-19 crisis, the intake this year will be well short of the almost 700 planned – with a knock-on impact on reaching 15,000.

In a wide-ranging five-page section on Policing, the programme makes 69 commitments, including on Garda reform, community policing, court reform and tackling white-collar crime.

It puts “visible community policing” at the heart of its policing policy and commits to “rapidly implementing” the report of the Commission on the Future of Policing, published in September 2018.

But in an apparent departure from the Commission’s report, which called for the Garda Commissioner to be accountable to an internal board and the Minister of Justice, the programme commits to keep a “strong and independent external accountability mechanism”.

On what will be of interest to embattled communities, the programme commits to expanding the renewal task force in Dublin’s north east inner city to “other comparative areas experiencing disadvantage”.

Other pledges include:
• Anti-social behaviour: set up a special expert forum; "examine" increasing the age limit for Garda Youth Diversion Programme to 24; criminalise adults who groom children to commit crimes; enhance Garda powers to limit use of scramblers and quads
• Prisons: set up a "high-level cross-departmental and cross-agency taskforce to consider the mental health and addiction challenges" of prisoners & considering broadening spent convictions legislation
• Hate Crime: introduce hate crime legislation within 12 months
• Domestic and Sexual Violence: a third national strategy to place a priority on prevention and reduction
• Online Safety: Online Safety Codes to combat cyberbullying and material promoting eating disorders, self-harm and suicide
• Cyber Security: Build capacity of National Centre for Cyber Security (but no specifics), including using the role of the Defence Forces

In a separate section on Drugs, the programme backs the health-led approach of the current National Drugs Strategy and commits to implementing the legal reforms of drug possession.

It promises to boost local drug task forces and focus on the links between mental health and drugs.

It also makes commitments to: Examine law on medical use of cannabis; a Citizens' Assembly to "consider matters relating to drug use"; increase and support drug testing, particularly at festivals; and increase residential beds for detox (no specifics).

On two major issues in certain communities, the government will “support” the Drug Related Intimidation Reporting Programme, but there are no specifics, and it pledges to criminalise coercion and use of minors in the drugs trade.