Garda numbers will reach an "all- time record level of strength" next year despite the cap on public service recruitment, the Minister for Justice has claimed.
Mr McDowell said that 642 Garda recruits are expected to start in the Garda College this year, and allowing for the expected rate of retirement, the Garda Commissioner has "projected" that this will result in the maximum authorised strength of 12,200 being reached during 2004.
The current strength of the force is 11,853, an increase of 105 on figures for June last year, when the Government came into office. Since then 518 recruits have graduated from the Garda college but in the same period 463 gardaí have "resigned, retired or otherwise left An Garda Síochána".
He was "conscious" of the recent increase in the rate of retirement and would bring proposals to Government shortly to deal with this, including increasing the retirement age.
"While it will not be possible to increase numbers beyond that point (12,200) for as long as the cap on public service numbers remains in place, this in itself will represent an all-time record level of strength," the Minister said, in a written reply to questions from Fine Gael Labour and Independent TD Mr Paudge Connolly (Cavan-Monaghan).
Mr McDowell insisted that he remained "committed to make progress as quickly as financial circumstances permit" towards the 14,000 target of Garda strength. He was examining the planning and logistical issues involved, "including the extent to which existing training capacity might need to be expanded or supplemented".
This follows comments by the president of the Garda Representative Association that the target of 2,000 extra gardaí could not be met before 2043 because of capacity limits at the college.
The Minister told Fine Gael's Justice spokesman, Mr John Deasy, in another reply that training a Garda recruit costs €58,128 over a two-year period.
