2026-03-19

13. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of Garda members who have retired or resigned from An Garda Síochána in each of the past five years; whether his Department has carried out any analysis of the reasons for those departures; the number of members currently eligible to retire within the next three years; and the measures being taken to improve retention within the force. [20843/26]

I want to ask the Minister the number of Garda members who have retired or resigned from An Garda Síochána in each of the past five years, whether his Department has carried out any analysis of the reasons for those departures, the number of members currently eligible to retire within the next three years and the measures being taken to improve retention within the force.

I thank Deputy Gannon for his question. I alluded to this in my response to Deputy Carthy earlier. In terms of resignations, 141 gardaí resigned from An Garda Síochána in 2025. That is a very low number. The number of gardaí is over 14,300 and, therefore, it is less than 1%. In terms of the number of retirements and resignations together over the past five years, 382 gardaí resigned or retired in 2021, 446 in 2022, 486 in 2023, 377 in 2024 and 359 in 2025. As I said, those figures include resignations and retirements. There is nothing we can do about gardaí who get to the retirement age and who want to retire but I suppose the figure that is of concern to me - I do not know if it is a concern to the Deputy - and that I would be interested in is that for resignations. The number of resignations has been low for the years to which I referred. In 2021, there were 89 resignations; in 2022, there were 106; in 2023, there were 167; in 2024, there were 137; and, as I said, last year, there were 141. That is indicative of low levels of resignation from the force, which is good. It is not something I am complacent about. I want to ensure that people who join up to An Garda Síochána find it a fulfilling career and that their terms and conditions are good. It is part of my function to ensure that resignations are kept as low as they are. It is a good sign because when you look at the Met, the PSNI or police forces in other places, you will see resignations are much higher than that.

I thank the Minister for his response. There was one part of the question he did not answer, which was the number of gardaí eligible to retire within the next three years. That is a figure of particular concern to me. When the Minister wrote about this issue in 2024, it was of particular concern to him. At that time, he talked about nearly 50% of the force becoming eligible for retirement by 2028. The figure he had in that article in 2024 was 6,400 gardaí becoming eligible for retirement. That was because in the late 1980s and 1990s, there was a large recruitment drive and the majority of those gardaí are now coming towards retirement age. The genuine concern is that the number of people we are recruiting to the Garda will not be able to match the number of gardaí who are reaching the age of eligibility for retirement. Previously, the Minister talked about activating the Garda Reserve and the expansion of Templemore but, as he said himself, there is potential for a retirement crisis on the horizon. What is the Government doing to mitigate that?

I should have answered that question because the Deputy did ask it. There is a cumulative figure of 1,792 gardaí that will become eligible to retire by 2028. That, of course, does not mean that this number will retire over this period, only that they will be eligible to do so. For example, a Garda member may have 30 years of service or more at age 55 but may opt not to retire for the next seven years until they reach the mandatory retirement age of 62. The Commissioner can, with my consent, extend the age of retirement of a Garda member beyond 62, where this is in the interests of the efficiency of the force. I am always pleased to see applications coming before me from the Commissioner for the extension of a retirement age beyond 62. A lot of people do not want to retire at 55. It is far too young. The figure, as I said, is 1,792. I do not think we will see that number taking up retirement. However, it is an issue we need to be aware of. It also emphasises the need to ensure that recruitment is ongoing.

I would like to hear more about the recruitment and the capacity for expansion, particularly around Templemore. We reach a particular limit when the Garda does recruitment drives. A lot of people put themselves forward but such is the level of time it takes for the training, which is obviously necessary, and for vetting, which we have seen huge problems with, I do not believe we are bringing enough people through to cover the potential retirements that are on the horizon. That figure of 1,700 eligible is different from the figure the Minister got through parliamentary questions two years ago, which there was a great emphasis on. How is that mitigated because at different points morale in the Garda goes up and goes down? The numbers the Minister gave me for retirements for the past five years are fairly consistent; they are in the 400s and the high 300s. If we have greater capacity for retirements, are we doing any exit interviews with gardaí who are leaving? What measures are we taking? Obviously, it is welcome if a person wishes to postpone their retirement beyond the age of 55. That is their choice and I can understand that. However, there are many who will not want to do that and many who have not done so.

The important thing is that we get Garda numbers continuously going up, which is happening. There are always going to be retirements and some small level of resignations but, cumulatively, we want to see the figures of attested gardaí rising, and we are seeing that. The Deputy asked about exit interviews. The Garda offers exit interviews to all individuals who leave the organisation, with the exception of those who are dismissed. They were established to determine longitudinal teams in relation to organisational attrition, but they highlighted some useful issues. In 2024, 39 exit interviews were completed. The majority, or 60%, stated they found it difficult to maintain their career as a Garda member while also managing their family life, 40% stated that the commuting and working distance from their homes was a significant deciding factor and another cohort expressed a view that poor management was a factor for their decision to leave. The numbers are low but many of the people who are leaving and doing these exit interviews, those who have resigned, are doing so because of a work-life balance, which happens in every walk of life. People decide the work just does not suit their lifestyle. However, I am pleased to say the number of resignations is very low.