REGISTRY BUILDING SHOULD BECOME NEW GARDA COLLEGE FOR COMMUNITY POLICING

Today, I have called for the Registry of Deeds building on Henrietta Street to be converted into a new Garda College.

This landmark building in the heart of the city should be preserved in public ownership, to the benefit of the country, the city and the local community.

The Labour Party has been calling for some time for a radical shift in Garda training. As well as time spent in Templemore, a rounded Garda training should involve taking courses alongside other students in a mainstream third level campus, in an urban setting.

We have argued that the new campus at Grangegorman would serve this purpose well.

The Registry of Deeds building would make an ideal headquarters for Dublin based training of the next Generation of Gardai. The building, which is already owned by the Department of Justice is situated close to the Grangegorman campus. As well as taking courses in the DIT, the building could be used to establish a centre of excellence in community policing, putting the methods and practice of community policing at the heart of the formation of our Gardai. This must involve attracting more recruits from disadvantaged and diverse backgrounds, including those in the local area, to the Garda Siochana.