Louth to get eight new Gardaí

Eight new Gardaí have been assigned to Louth as part of the 194 recruits graduating from Templemore today bringing the total number of new Gardaí this year to over 600.

One will be stationed in Ardee, four will be stationed in Drogheda, and three will be stationed in Dundalk.

Fianna Fáil TD for Louth, Erin McGreehan, welcomed the attestation of the new Gardaí to County Louth, saying it marks another positive step in strengthening community policing and public safety.

Today’s passing out ceremony at Templemore saw 194 new Gardaí take up posts across the country with major allocations to Dublin and Cork.

This class is the largest since 2019 and includes 57 women and 137 men. 17 garda reserves have also graduated.

Since the appointment of Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan two successful Garda recruitment campaigns have been completed, attracting over 11,100 applications in total.

Following the announcement, Deputy McGreehan said:

“I’m delighted to see real momentum building when it comes to Garda recruitment and the allocation of new members to communities across the country. The Minister has made Garda recruitment a top priority since taking office, and we are now seeing the results of that focus.

"The 8 newly deployed Gardaí to Louth 1 will be stationed in Ardee, 4 will be stationed in Drogheda, and 3 will be stationed in Dundalk.

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“This is ultimately about restoring public confidence in our Garda force and ensuring they have the resources they need by getting more Gardaí on the beat in every community. The best way to strengthen public trust and ensure people feel safe is through greater Garda visibility and accessibility in our towns and villages.”

This year, for the first time, there were two Garda recruitment competitions. The February campaign attracted 6,784 applicants, while the October campaign received 4,334 applications. Notably, 57% of the October applicants were first-time candidates.