I thank Deputy Carthy for his question. As every Member of the House knows, a visible Garda presence is really essential to ensuring the public feel a sense of safety. It is also essential from the Government's perspective and from the objective within the programme for Government to build safe and secure communities for the public to enjoy. In February, there was the first Garda recruitment campaign of 2025. I am pleased to say this competition was particularly successful and more than 6,700 applications were received in response to it. This demonstrates the continued interest that exists in a career in An Garda Síochána. I want to answer the specifics of Deputy Carthy's questions. In 2022, there were only two intakes of gardaí into Templemore. These were intakes of 24 and 92 trainees, with 25 and 86 gardaí attested from those intakes. There were a total of 111 gardaí attested in 2022, out of a total of 116 who commenced. In 2023, there were five intakes of 135, 154, 174, 174 and 109 trainees. Of those, there was a total of 707 attested. In 2023, 746 were taken in and 707 attested. In 2024, there were four intakes, with a total of 630 taken in and, to date, 438 trainee gardaí attested from the first three intakes. The individual totals for these three intakes are 169, 149 and 120. The final intake of 2024 is due to attest later this year. Deputy Carthy can see there is a variation in the numbers for each of the three years that he asked about because it is dependent on whether there are four or five intakes.

Sentiment score: 0.16

The programme for Government commitment is that we will recruit 5,000 gardaí during the five-year term of the Government. I am not too worried about whether we get to 1,000 each year and if they are evenly spread over the five years. The priority is to get to 5,000. We need to increase the numbers within the force. On the retention crisis, the number of resignations from An Garda Síochána is pretty small. In 2024, approximately only 1% of attested members of An Garda Síochána resigned from the force. That is a pretty low number when compared to the PSNI or other police forces in the UK. On the future, I am trying to recruit as many gardaí this year as possible. I cannot give the Deputy a figure now as to how many but I ask him to give me some ideas. When I was on the backbenches, I suggested proposals such as increasing the age that someone could join to above 35 and extending the retirement age. I am open to Deputy Carthy's ideas.

Sentiment score: 0.08

On the intakes this year, there will be four. There was one in June, there will be another in August and there will be another before the end of the year. There will be approximately four intakes this year. Some years, there can be five but it is dependent upon each year and how the schedule operates. On the proposal to increase the training allowance, that is something I will certainly look at. It is something we have indicated in the programme of Government. At present, it is €354 per week during training. I am confident about the immediate future. It is significant that 6,700 people expressed interest during the recruitment campaign. It is also noteworthy that, of those 6,700 who expressed interest in February, some of them were already starting in the Garda College. Certainly, many of them will be starting in the next intake. Historically, there was a delay turning expressions of interest into trainees on the ground. That is changing and I am pleased to see it is speeding up.

Sentiment score: 0.24

I thank Deputy Connolly for her question. As she knows, the Women's Aid report was published last week. I had the privilege and responsibility of launching it. The statistics within it are very concerning. There were 32,144 contacts made with Women's Aid services last year. That was a 12% increase on the previous year. I was also aware of the statistic contained within it that 44% of women were not satisfied with the response they got in the first instance from An Garda Síochána. Notwithstanding the fact that the majority were satisfied, it indicates there is an issue in ensuring gardaí are suitably and adequately qualified in responding to the scourge of domestic violence. My own assessment and the advice I have received from within An Garda Síochána and, indeed, from people who are victims of domestic violence is that, once the victim gets engaged with the experts within An Garda Síochána who are extensively trained in dealing with domestic violence, they have a very positive outcome. That is apparent when one considers the response from people outside court where there has been a successful conviction. Obviously, it is imperative that we ensure there is adequate and sufficient training for gardaí in the whole area of domestic violence and coercive control. I want Deputy Connolly to know that, in phase 1 of training at Templemore, trainee gardaí complete 34 hours of instruction on domestic and sexual crime investigation, with dedicated classes on domestic abuse investigation in phases 2 and 3. Trainees in Templemore receive an online presentation on the basics of domestic violence investigation, where the importance of positive first contact with victims is highlighted. It is also the case that trainees attend an in-person workshop on the Domestic Violence Act 2018 and An Garda Síochána policy on domestic abuse intervention. At the nine-week operational stage, trainee gardaí assume an observational role attached to Garda stations. There is training but there certainly needs to be greater improvement.

Sentiment score: -0.02

This is a societal problem. However, my own assessment of it is that there is a growing recognition of the extent of this problem and there is a greater sense of confidence and capacity on the part of women to no longer tolerate this and therefore, to report it. There is a debate as to whether the increased numbers are due to an increase in violence against women or a greater sense of confidence and security in coming forward. It is probably an alignment of both, I regret to say. The increase in violence against women seems to be driven from the completely malign and repulsive presentation on social media to young men and boys as to how relationships should develop. We need to keep an eye on what is happening with boys and young men owing to what they are being exposed to online. However, I believe the attitude of society, politics and people in this House to domestic violence has changed remarkably. There is strong resistance to tolerating it any further. The Garda is doing a good job in respect of it.

Sentiment score: 0.04

There is mandatory training for trainees in Templemore, as I outlined in my answer. Second, I have instructed officials in my Department to prepare the heads of Bill amending the Domestic Violence Act to ensure that, with respect to persons convicted of serious offences on indictment, the detail will be published in court judgments. This will entail a decision by the judges hearing the case. Efforts are being made and, as the Deputy knows, I have permission from the Government to draft an amendment to the counselling notes. This is being drafted at present and it will be contained within the criminal law (miscellaneous provisions) Bill. There are also other legislative provisions, including on sex for rent and the register, that I have brought forward.

Sentiment score: -0.12

I thank Deputy Ward for asking this question. He will recall that about six weeks ago, during the last round of oral questions to the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, his colleague Deputy Ó Snodaigh raised a similar question. During the course of an exchange between me and Deputy Ó Snodaigh, I stated that we should look to see if there is some mechanism of expediting this process of bringing forward legislation. Deputy Ward will be aware that a working group produced a report in 2023 which set out a very detailed yet slightly complicated statutory proposal as to how the scheme would operate. When I was discussing the matter with Deputy Ó Snodaigh on the last occasion, I said I would go back to the Department and see if there was any way it could be expedited. I would like him to know that I asked my officials to examine whether the draft heads for the disregard scheme could be produced in a streamlined form that would facilitate their inclusion in the miscellaneous provisions Bill which is currently with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel for drafting. I believe this is achievable and offers a speedier route to enactment than a dedicated disregard Bill. Drafting of legislative heads on these lines is now at an advanced stage and I hope to bring the heads to Government for approval shortly, with a view to their being added to the miscellaneous provisions Bill. I commend Deputy Ó Snodaigh and the other members of the Opposition who last Tuesday introduced the Disregard of Historic Offences for Consensual Sexual Activity Between Men Bill 2025. I have had an opportunity to look at the Bill. It is a very fine piece of professional drafting. I will certainly take it into consideration and officials in my Department will take it into account when working on the legislative heads I have outlined. My priority is to try to get legislation enacted as quickly as possible. Whether that is done through my miscellaneous provisions Bill, which I think is probably the speedier way of doing it, or through the Opposition Private Members' Bill, I am agnostic in respect of that. The important thing is that we try to put in place a speedy statutory scheme to facilitate these men whom Deputy Ward spoke about.

Sentiment score: 0.26

I thank the Deputy. Just to add to the statistics, because it is important we know the extent of what we are potentially talking about, it is hard to be definitive but research indicates that between 1950 and 1993, when homosexuality was decriminalised, approximately 940 men received convictions under the Offences Against the Person Act or the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 1885. The Deputy is absolutely correct. A number of these men will still be alive and will still have convictions over their name for something that we now regard as something that should not have been criminalised in the past. I do not want a scheme that is going to be too complicated or onerous. I want a scheme whereby individuals will have to apply, and also an opportunity for representatives of a deceased person to apply. Although many of the 64 men will be alive, there are men from before that and a majority of the 940 who probably are deceased. We need to ensure there is an opportunity for the living and for representatives of the recently deceased to bring an application in respect of this.

Sentiment score: 0.20

My view is that since the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration has been working on a particular Bill up to now, and I have asked the officials to expedite this matter to see if we can get it into the miscellaneous provisions Bill, that is probably the speedier method of getting it done. There is an advantage to being in government from the point of view of trying to get legislation through the House. I commend Opposition colleagues who bring in detailed Bills, such as the one presented here last Tuesday, but Deputy Ward knows himself that they require the use of Private Members' time. I would not oppose this Bill on Second Stage but I do think it will be quicker if it is done through the criminal law (miscellaneous provisions) Bill that I will be introducing later this year. One of the tricky things about this, which the Bill Deputy Ó Snodaigh introduced recognises, is that there is a distinction between persons who were convicted for homosexual activity between consenting males - everyone recognises that if there was not consensual activity and if the individual was of a young age-----

Sentiment score: 0.04

That could not be quashed.

Sentiment score: 0.00

That is where the complexity is. I am positive about the fact that something is going to be done shortly.

Sentiment score: 0.28

I thank Deputy Brabazon for the question. I am very aware of the capacity issues that exist in our prisons, and challenges faced by those who work and live in our prisons as a result. The current programme for Government commits to increasing the capacity of our prisons by an additional 1,500 spaces, and the Irish Prison Service has already begun work to achieve this. Since January 2022, capacity across the prison estate has been increased by more than 300 new spaces, with 126 delivered in 2024 and 40 delivered to date in 2025, with plans to deliver a further 101 additional spaces by the end this year. Budget 2025 increased overall funding to the Irish Prison Service by €79 million, or 18%, when compared to 2024, bringing the total allocated to nearly €525 million. This increase is to fund measures to address overcrowding, including a capital budget of €53 million, which is €22.5 million more than the original 2024 allocation. The Irish Prison Service also aims to recruit up to 300 prison officers in 2025, in addition to the 271 prison officers recruited in 2024. The future prison capacity working group was established back in 2024 to further consider future prison capacity needs and to make recommendations on the numbers and types of prison capacity needed out to 2035. I brought the report of this working group to Cabinet recently and it will be published shortly. I also recently brought to Cabinet a proposal to accelerate the delivery of 960 additional prison spaces by utilising an exemption from the initial approval stages of the infrastructure guidelines for these projects. That is the public spending code. This will enable accelerated delivery with timelines reduced by 12 months to 18 months. Overall, there are plans in place to deliver extra spaces. It has to be done rapidly. I am doing it as fast as I can, but I understand the capacity issues.

Sentiment score: -0.12

This is one area of the criminal justice system where there are capacity issues that need to be addressed fundamentally and rapidly. We invest huge resources in An Garda Síochána and the courts to ensure we get cases on for hearing in the criminal courts as quickly as possible. The whole system will not operate effectively if, at the end of those processes when a person has received a significant custodial sentence, there is an issue arising in respect of capacity for that person to serve their sentence. As the Deputy will appreciate, it is also the case that we need to look at alternatives to imprisonment. There are a lot of people in prison. I have visited five of the prisons to date. There are a lot of people in prison who have serious health and addiction issues. There are also people in prison who could be doing community service. That is an area that I am going to change by amending the community services legislation to allow judges to now consider the imposition of community sanctions in respect of a person on whom a sentence of up to two years in prison is to be imposed. There are options other than fining or incarcerating somebody.

Sentiment score: -0.04

I want the House to be aware that there are some very fine prisons in Ireland. We talked about Cork Prison. The new Cork Prison, which I have visited, is an excellent prison. Similarly, I have visited both the men's and women's prisons in Limerick. Huge investment went into them. The Irish Prison Service deserve to be commended on getting these prisons built on time and on budget. When we do prisons, we do them well. Our population has increased significantly. However, our prison capacity has not similarly increased. If we go back to 2011, we had a prison capacity of approximately 4,600. Today, we still have a prison capacity of 4,600. We need to recognise that with the increasing population, there has to be an increase in capacity for prisons. That is not a sign that we are turning into a lock-them-up society, but it is an indication that when there is a greater population, we are going to need greater prison spaces.

Sentiment score: -0.07