Clare TDs lambasted over garda station closures

CLARE’S Government deputies have been accused of giving a local group “false hope” about the possibility of averting the closure of Broadford Garda Station before it was officially confirmed.

Members of the Broadford and O’Callaghan’s Mills Community Alert Committees organised a meeting with local deputies and county councillors on Sunday, December 2 last.

This meeting was attended by, Fianna Fáil TD Timmy Dooley, Fine Gael’s Pat Breen, Labour’s Michael McNamara along with Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway and Councillor Joe Cooney.

Three days later, the Garda Commissioner Martin Callanan dropped a bombshell when he revealed that 100 garda stations would close throughout the country, including eight in Clare, two of which are in Mountshannon and Broadford.

Broadford Community Alert chairman, Michael McInerney, said he suspected that Government deputies should have known that Broadford Garda Station was on the closure list when they attended the December meeting just a few days before the official announcement was made, considering the list must have been finalised a few weeks beforehand.

Mr McInerney said deputies could have told the group there was nothing more they could do considering a decision was made, instead of giving them “false hope” by promising to make further representations to Justice Minister Alan Shatter.

However, Deputy McNamara rejected any suggestion he had given “false hope” to the group at the meeting. He said he told the group he had met Minister Shatter about a week before the Broadford meeting and raised the issue about the possible closure of the garda station.

Deputy McNamara stated the minister wasn’t aware of the situation concerning Broadford Garda Station and noted this was a matter for the Garda Commissioner.

Deputy Timmy Dooley expressed his disappointment at a recent public meeting about the closure of Broadford Garda Station that Government Oireachtas members were not here to take a temperature of mood and report to Minister Shatter about the need for garda stations in rural areas.

“I faced the public before when tough decisions were made. But I always went to public meetings whether I was going to be harangued or not.

“We might need to see a little bit more of that,” he said.

One man asked Deputy Dooley if Fianna Fáil was returned to Government would he reverse the decision, or work to reverse it.

Deputy Dooley said Fianna Fáil had stated current garda numbers are too low.

Another resident interjected to point out Fianna Fáil had agreed with the Troika to reduce garda numbers to just over 13,000. “Don’t get party political on this,” he said.

Councillor Joe Cooney pointed out that Clare deputies weren’t invited to this public meeting and noted Deputy Dooley had stayed on after the post office meeting earlier that evening.

Asked if the Broadford Community Alert Committee had taken up Deputy Dooley’s suggestion to meet Oireachtas members again, Mr McInerney said they had been assured Minister Shatter wasn’t prepared for a U-turn on the issue. However, he said the two community alert groups are interested in setting up a policing committee in the locality and already had volunteers and some offers to use public buildings for a visiting garda.

Councillor Joe Cooney, who is the chairman of O’Callaghan’s Mills Community Alert, has pledged to contact Chief Superintendent John Kerin to see if agreement can be reached for scheduled times for a visiting garda.

Deputy Joe Carey acknowledged the closure of garda stations in Clare was a very emotive contentious issue, which had emerged following the new Garda Policing Plan, which was developed by Garda Commissioner, Martin Callinan in consultation with chief superintendents throughout the country.

Stating he didn’t have a say into deciding which garda station closed, he stressed that he didn’t know Broadford was closing when he met the group. However, he acknowledged that it was reasonable to assume Broadford was under threat of closure considering Mr Callinan had previously stated that stations manned by one garda faced an uncertain future.

Deputy Breen commented, “In all my discussions with the Justice Minister and the Garda authorities, I have been assured that the objective of rationalising the station network is to deploy gardai more effectively. Policing methods have to adapt to the changing circumstances and what the public want to see is the greatest possible deployment of gardaí on operational duties.

“Stations and the most effective deployment of gardai on operational duties. Surely no-one can claim with any credibility that we must maintain every single garda station we have had since the foundation of the State without regard to the revolution there has been in transport,” he said.