Ban on Garda overtime will have 'devastating impact' says former Mayor of Co Kildare

The former Mayor of Co Kildare is concerned that the county has the lowest number of Gardaí in the country, with rising levels of crime.

This comes amidst reports that non- essential overtime for Gardaí is banned which Cllr Martin Miley fears will have a 'devastating impact' for the county.

Cllr Martin Miley said:“This will, if allowed to happen, have a devastating impact on the provision of policing in counties such as Kildare . While senior management may not see this overtime as essential, it is vitally important in ensuring that all communities are served by Gardaí on the beat. Put simply, overtime is essential due to a lack of Garda numbers overall. We don’t have enough members of the force at present, so the remaining members have to work overtime."

He said:“Morale is incredibly low among grassroots members of the Gardaí. They are crying out for more members to be deployed to rural stations across the county eg Athy station. Numbers are extremely low and now a ban on overtime is concerning."

Cllr Miley said: “The Justice Minister needs to give the Garda Commissioner the resources he needs to effectively police communities up and down our country. Resourcing of An Garda Síochána is a political not operational matter, and the Minister needs to give the Gardaí the resources it needs."