Number of Gardai in Rathcoole down from 27 to 15
GARDA numbers in Rathcoole have dropped from 27 to 15 in the past five years, despite the population in the area growing by 27 per cent since 2011.
The local station, which opens from 10am to 6pm, Monday to Sunday, has lost 12 officers since 2012, with the part-time opening hours, which sees the station close for lunch, “subject to the availability of Garda personnel”.
This new information was received by Dublin Mid-West TD John Curran (Fianna Fáil) through a parliamentary question directed at the Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan.
Speaking on the issue, Deputy Curran said: “I have been informed that 27 Gardai were assigned to Rathcoole Garda station in 2012 and only 15 are now deployed to the station.
“There were 86 vehicle thefts in Rathcoole in the first half of this year an increase of 56 per cent, a 21 per cent increase in shop theft and 56 burglaries between January 2017 and August 2017.
“According to the Minister’s reply, Rathcoole Garda station is open from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm, Monday to Sunday, subject to the availability of Gardai. We need to see more gardai on the streets and in our towns and villages.”
According to the Census 2016, Rathcoole’s population increased from 3,420 to more than 4,350 – an increase of 27 per cent.
Deputy Curran is now calling on the Minister to ensure that Rathcoole Garda Station receives an increased allocation for new gardai when 200 trainees graduate later this year.
