An additional 25 staff are to be redeployed from the Department of Agriculture to the Garda vetting unit, the Dáil was told.

Minister of State Dinny McGinley said Minister for Justice Alan Shatter had asked him to assure the House that it would remain a priority to ensure vetting applications would be dealt with as quickly as possible.

Mr McGinley said the average processing time for applications was 12 weeks. “However, seasonal fluctuations and the necessity to seek additional information on particular applications can result in this processing time being exceeded on occasion.’’

He said that all organisations registered for Garda vetting were aware of the processing time frames involved and had been advised to factor this into their recruitment and selection process. It was worth emphasising that the primary purpose of the vetting process was the protection of children and vulnerable adults and that must remain the case.

The Minister of State was replying to Fine Gael TDs John O’Mahony and Patrick O’Donovan. Mr O’Mahony said that while everybody recognised the need for vetting, there was concern about the length of time it took to get clearance.