PEOPLE are “living in fear” due to a lack of Garda manpower in Clare, according to a Dáil deputy amid concerns about the drop in numbers over the last five years, while other Munster counties received additional resources.
A Clare Champion analysis of Garda members assigned to Garda stations has revealed the total Garda force in Clare fell from 292 in 2015 to 289 in January 2025, despite a dramatic increase of 9,121 in the number of people in the Banner County, according to the 2022 Census of Population.
In fact, Clare is the only Munster county where its overall Garda numbers dropped during this ten-year period.
The overall Garda force in Cork increased from 1,225 to 1,282, in Kerry it went up from 300 to 342, Limerick increased from 554 to 582, Tipperary from 354 to 385 and Waterford jumped from 282 to 350.
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East Clare correspondent, Dan Danaher is a journalism graduate of Rathmines and UL. He has won numerous awards for special investigations on health, justice, environment, and reports on news, agriculture, disability, mental health and community.