James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I apologise to the Deputy and I will certainly undertake to get those figures for him because it was a straight question and the figure has not been provided. I agree community gardaí are essential. In terms of understanding local communities, while all gardaí are community gardaí, having dedicated community gardaí is essential to building up those relationships and a sense of trust in working with the local communities and also to being a point of contact when issues arise. Furthermore, it helps us understand what the real levels of crime might be in an area rather than simply the level of reported crime. They have a good understanding of where hotspots are and where issues are arising and can work with the local community. I certainly agree with the Deputy on the importance of those local community gardaí when they are assigned to particular areas and in working with other Garda members. Moreover, when other aspects of the Garda Síochána might be coming into an area, such as the emergency response unit or regular policing units, they can talk to the community gardaí, work with them in the context of what they are getting into and avoid upsetting the local community.

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