Budget rows back on plans for 800 new recruits as ‘brain drain’ fears rise
UP TO 700 additional gardaí are to be recruited next year, but a cull of senior officers could give rise to a “brain drain” .
It also means that the Government has rowed back on its plan to recruit 800 new gardai in 2020.
The overall justice sector budget is set to increase by €120m to around €2.9bn, with most of the increase going towards policing as the Government strives to meet a target of having a 15,000-strong Garda force by 2021.
Recruitment next year should see the number of Garda members rise to around 14,700, when retirements are taken into account.
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said extra civilian staff will also allow more trained gardaí to return to frontline policing.
However, the rate of retirement among more senior ranks will be higher than usual with a “once-off targeted severance option for senior management”.
This stems from radical plans by Garda Commissioner Drew Harris to restructure the force, which would see fewer divisions, as well as fewer chief superintendents and superintendents.
Some Garda sources privately fear this could lead to a “brain drain” in senior ranks.
The changes are in line with recommendations made by the Commission on the Future of Policing. Applications for exit packages are expected to open by the end of the year.
Because of the increasing size of the force and anticipated pay and pension increases, some €69m of the €120m increase in spending is earmarked for Garda pay. A further €12m is being pledged towards non-pay Garda expenditure.
The Garda Representative Association said the Government’s policing plan looked like it was being built on quicksand following the allocation of €81m for the force.
Association president Jim Mulligan said the €81m would have to be spread too thin.
Meanwhile, an additional €10m is being allocated towards the cost of the “significant pressures” being faced by the director provision system. Spending on the Courts Service and the Prison Service is set to increase by a combined €12m.
Some €1m has been set aside for the long-awaited Judicial Council. It will have a key role in the ongoing education and training of the judiciary, developing sentencing guidelines and dealing with complaints against judges.
One of its most anticipated functions will be the recalibration of personal injury awards, amid long-standing concerns that high awards are driving up insurance premiums.