An Garda Síochána
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-16
============================================================

Louise O'Reilly (SF), Dublin Fingal West

That is very welcome. I have a wee suggestion, if the Minister does not mind. It comes from the petition that Ciara has circulated. As I said, it has been signed by more than 1,000 people. What they are seeking is a formal assessment by the Department of justice and An Garda Síochána of the policing needs of the Rush–Lusk area. The Minister will understand that while the number of gardaí working in the Dublin metropolitan region is fine and big, I am talking about the men and women working out of Balbriggan and Skerries, where the numbers are not sufficient to cover the entire area they are in charge of.
The petition is also seeking the provision of a permanent full-time Garda station to serve the community. I am more than happy to take the Minister up on his offer. I will absolutely engage with him, with his officials and his office because I want to see a visible garda presence. His former colleague, former Deputy Farrell, has said Rush Garda station's closure has damaged the local community, leaving it feeling significantly less safe and less secure. The Minister should not take my word for it; rather, he should take that of his former colleague in government. I can refer to it not just because I live in the local area but also because the people who contact my offices in Balbriggan and Rush tell me so. It is true that people want additional gardaí and that very often TDs call for them in the Dáil, but I am seeking additional gardaí, additional infrastructure and the reopening of the Rush Garda station. Indeed, I am also seeking a station to serve Lusk. I have information on population growth to back that up. It is not simply the case that I want more gardaí for my area simply because I know that it would be good. I have the statistics to back it up. I can show the Minister that there has been population growth. The increase in the number of gardaí has not matched that.

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-16