There have been 16 new Gardaí have have been allocated to the north-western region headquartered in Galway.
A total of 122 Gardaí have been attested as sworn members today, with a further 26 recruits expected to join the force in the coming weeks.
Commissioner Drew Harris said, “These new Gardaí were willing to come forward to pursue a career in An Garda Síochána at a critical time during a global pandemic, and very quickly adjusted to a model of hybrid learning.”
“So from the very outset they have shown their ability and commitment to protecting the public.”
“Our new Gardaí will help implement community policing initiatives, crime detection and prevention, and supporting the vulnerable, particularly during the ongoing pandemic.”
Of these new officers, 73 percent are male and 27 percent are female, roughly the same as the gender breakdown in the existing strength of 14,411 sworn officers and Garda reserves.
Commissioner Harris said that Ireland is “above the European average” for the number of female police officers, and that it is hoped to increase this in the years ahead.
“An Garda Síochána is a growing organisation. Along with the new Gardaí today, we have 235 currently in training.”
“We will also shortly launch our recruitment campaign with 800 recruit Gardaí to commence training this year. In addition, we are continuing to reassign Gardaí from administrative duties to operational duties.”
Since the end of November there have been 839 Gardaí reassigned from administrative duties to front line services due to the hiring of new civilian staff.
Among the 3,388 civilian staff working with An Garda Síochána, the gender ratio is flipped 72 percent female and 28 percent male.
Of the new officers sworn today, and those due to be attested shortly, 67 have been allocated to the Dublin region, 39 to the East, 26 to the south, and 16 to the north-west.
There are also 235 Garda recruits in training, and An Garda Síochána has today announced its intention to recruit another 800 officers this year.
“I wish to congratulate each Garda, and their families on their attestation today. It is a very proud day for you all, and you are most welcome to An Garda Síochána. I look forward to us working together to keep people safe,” concluded Commissioner Harris.
