Will all policing be funded by donations?

The generosity of Tom Cavanagh in donating €45,000 towards the purchase of a Garda bus to support community policing in Gurranabraher (Irish Examiner, April 17) is commendable.

But why has community policing been reduced to dependency on donations? Is ‘community policing’ merely a buzzword to bolster the fading image of An Garda Síochána.

Is it not a vital element of the wider policing agenda? What other elements of Garda infrastructure will have to be funded by wealthy philanthropists, or sponsored by commercial concerns, such as cable television providers, burglar-alarm companies, champagne importers, condom suppliers or lingerie designers?