Dublin's north inner city sees biggest drop in frontline garda numbers this year 

All but one of the country’s 27 Garda divisions have experienced a reduction in frontline gardaí since January.

The number of gardaí working in stations in Dublin’s north inner city has decreased by almost 4% since the start of the year, according to the latest staffing figures for An Garda Síochána.

Updated details on staffing levels across the country’s 564 Garda stations show the number of gardaí attached to the Dublin North Central division — which covers stations including Store Street, Bridewell and Mountjoy — has fallen by 3.8% since the start of 2023.

It is the largest percentage drop in numbers of frontline gardaí in any Garda division nationwide over the past six months.

All but one of the country’s 27 Garda divisions have experienced a reduction in frontline gardaí since January.

The latest figures show the Dublin North Central division, which has one of the highest crime rates in the country, had 615 gardaí last month — 24 fewer than at the start of the year.

Store Street attack

Policing in the capital’s north inner city has come under scrutiny in the past week following an unprovoked violent attack on Store Street on Wednesday night which left a US tourist with life-changing injuries.

Business owners in the Talbot Street area, where last week’s violent assault took place, claim there is a permanent issue with anti-social behaviour in the north inner city and a lack of visible policing.

The incident happened within 100 metres of the capital’s largest Garda station which has experienced a reduction in eight frontline staff since January to 251.

During a visit to Store Street Garda station on Friday following the incident, the Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, insisted that Dublin was a safe city, although she added that people were “not going to be safe all the time everywhere in a city centre or anywhere.” 

Ms McEntee also remarked that garda numbers “have not been at the level that I would like this year,” but claimed there had been a steady increase, while she stated 450 Garda recruits will be in training by the end of this month.

The US tourist who is a regular visitor to Ireland, Stephen Termini (57) from New York, remains in intensive care in Beaumont Hospital with serious head injuries.

The attack on Mr Termini came just weeks after another unprovoked assault in the area on a Ukrainian actor who had been performing in the Abbey Theatre.

Garda staffing levels in Dublin city centre are expected to be raised with the assistant Garda commissioner with responsibility for policing in Dublin, Angela Willis, at a meeting of Dublin City Council’s Joint Policing Committee on Monday.

Ms Willis pointed out last week that gardaí have conducted more than 10,500 foot patrols in the city centre area since January as part of Operation Citizen.

While the Government had a target of increasing the size of the force to 15,000 together with 4,000 civilian staff by 2021, the latest figures show the total number of gardaí at the end of June was 13,892 – 241 fewer than at the start of the year.

When officers who are on career breaks, work-sharing, secondments and maternity and parental leave are excluded, the total number of available gardaí falls to 13,658.

Meanwhile, civilian staff numbers have remained effectively unchanged over the past six months at 3,127.

The latest figures show the overall number of frontline gardaí has dropped to 12,009 since the end of December – a decrease of 264 or 2.2% nationally.

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A report by the Oireachtas’ Parliamentary Budget Office published last month estimated that the Government would have to spend an extra €138m annually on payroll costs if it is to meet its official target on Garda staffing levels.

It also revealed that Ireland has the 12th lowest number of police officers on a per capita basis out of 33 European countries.

Based on staffing levels across police forces in Europe in 2020, the study found the number of gardaí per 100,000 population is 11% below the average.

The report revealed that Ireland had 291 gardaí per 100,000 population in 2020 compared to the EU average of 328.

Impact of covid-19

A Garda spokesperson said An Garda Síochána had been a growing organisation until the outset of the covid-19 pandemic which affected its training and recruitment plans due to the closure of the Garda College in Templemore, Co Tipperary.

The spokesperson pointed out that 150 gardaí had retired so far in 2023 up to the end of May together with 59 others who resigned from the force.

Gardaí said 370 recruits are currently undergoing training with 222 due to be attested as sworn members next week with a further intake of recruits due to commence training in the Garda College in August.

The spokesperson pointed out that 153 recruits who began training in May were chosen from over 5,000 who had applied to join the force last year, while Garda management has committed to annualised recruitment campaigns in order to reach the target figure of 15,000 gardaí.

She highlighted that almost 900 gardaí have been released from administrative tasks to operational duties in recent years to work in areas such as tackling street-level drug dealing and preventing and detecting sexual crime and domestic abuse.

The spokesperson also pointed out that gardaí can transfer between stations at the discretion of local Garda management based on factors such as crime trends, operational strategies and the policing needs of individual areas which are kept “under constant review.”