TUAM BASED GARDA REPRESENTATIVE ASSOC VP SAYS MORALE AT ALL TIME LOW

Date Published: 08-Jan-2013

The Galway based Vice President of the Garda representative assocation says morale among the force is at an all time low.

Dermot O' Brien who is stationed at Tuam Garda station, says Gardaí are frustrated by the monetary cutbacks which are impacting on the level of service to the public.

It follows confirmation by the Department of Justice that it's to cut the Garda payroll provision by up to 35 million euro.

Senior officers are raising concerns that it will result in Garda numbers falling by over 1,000 to 12,000 members.

There are currently 13 thousand 417 serving Gardaí and around 400 retire each year.

However, Justice Minister Alan Shatter says there is "absolutely no question" of the force falling to below 13,000 this year.

Dermot O' Brien says he's seriously concerned about the impacts further budget cuts will having on policing activity here.