Clare Councillors say they still feel left in the dark about the long-term future of the Clare Garda Division.
Senior Gardaí addressed a special meeting of the local authority yesterday, amid fears the Clare and Galway divisions are set to be amalgamated.
While it was ruled out in the short-term, there was no indication of what may happen down the line, as Clare FM’s James Mulhall reports:
Assistant Garda Commissioner for the Southern Region, Clare native Anne-Marie McMahon issued a strong reassurance that policing will not suffer in this county.
But despite these words, Councillors here remain concerned, as there have been no guarantees for further down the lines.
Yesterday’s meeting heard that the report of the Commission of the Future of Policing recommends ‘structural changes’; though it’s not clear what these may be.
Whitegate Fine Gael Councillor Pat Burke, who is a member of Clare’s Joint Policing Committee, is concerned that an amalgamation is still on the cards.
The Mayor of Ennis also feels such a move is possible
Fianna Fáil’s Clare Colleran-Molloy has given a warm welcome to the news that it’s not in the immediate plans, but she does have reservations.
Yesterday’s meeting also heard that a new Chief Superintendent for the Clare Garda Division will be appointed ‘in the near future’.
That office has been vacant since the retirement of John Kerin on January 1st.
