Garda numbers are increasing by just 81 per year and the Government commitment to increase the force from 12,000 to 14,000 is "impossible to achieve", Fine Gael has claimed.
The party's justice spokesman Mr Jim O'Keeffe said it would take 25 years to reach the Government's pre-2002 general election target based on figures from the Minister for Justice's department.
"Figures from Michael McDowell's own Department prove that the Minister will fail to deliver anything close to the 2,000 extra gardaí pledged in the Programme for Government, yet he persists in trying to fool the public into believing that he and his Government will fulfil its promise," Mr O'Keeffe said.
"Department of Justice figures released to me in a Parliamentary Question indicate that from 2002 to the end of this year 1,498 gardaí will have passed out of Templemore. Yet in the same period the force lost 1,255 gardaí due to ill-health, retirement, death, dismissal or otherwise.
"That means that since the Government made its promise, the strength of the Garda Síochána has increased by only 243. That's only 81 a year - not very impressive if Minister McDowell is serious about achieving his target."
Mr O'Keeffe said estimates to the end of the year end predict 55 extra retirees and 175 extra graduate recruits.
"We are more than half way through the life of this Government. It is clear that the commitment made to increase Garda numbers from 12,000 to 14,000 is impossible to achieve.
"It takes two years to train a garda. The maximum number of garda recruits that Templemore can take is 690 per annum." He also claimed that based on the Department's figures, Templemore isn't running at full capacity.
"However, if Minister McDowell is embarrassed about his record to date perhaps he should give serious consideration to the following Fine Gael suggestions, which could plug the hole in the Government's broken promise in conjunction with an increase in Garda numbers."
Mr O'Keeffe said Fine Gael proposals included moving 373 gardai currently on desk duty to street policing. Full implementation of the civilianisation of administrative posts currently occupied by gardai, as recommended in a major report some years ago, would greatly increase Garda visibility on the streets of towns and cities across the country, he added.
The party also called for the increase in the retirement age for sergeants and inspectors from 57 to 60 and for the establishment of a panel of retired gardai who could fill in for gardai on maternity leave or prolonged sick leave.
"I also believe that we should increase the entry age from 26 to 35 years. This would increase the pool of potential new recruits to which the Garda Síochána has access and allow in those with qualifications and life experience obtained elsewhere.
"The public is extremely disillusioned with the Government's failure do anything about crime levels. They are sick of hearing 'new' announcements that more gardaí are on the way, when clearly they are not. It is time for action now rather than talk."