Commitment to new Garda Station in Tipp

Deputy Michael Lowry has welcomed the commitment shown by An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, to progress the provision of the new Garda Station in Clonmel.

Speaking in the Dail, An Taoiseach acknowledged that the new Garda Stations for both Clonmel and Macroom are currently bundled with the provision of a new Family Law Court in Dublin, but separating the Dublin Court would allow the Garda Stations in both Clonmel and Macroom to go ahead quite quickly - ‘possibly in the next year or so’.

An Taoiseach added that Government is working out the legalities and details of doing this, saying that ‘it does require bringing forward some spending but, if you take the long-term view, it would be cheaper to do it sooner – it’s just a reallocation of funding.

An Taoiseach said that a meeting on this matter is expected to take place this week.

Deputy Lowry has raised this matter on a number of occasions with both the Taoiseach and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Plan Delivery and Reform, Paschal Donohoe, emphasising to both that the present impasse has been dragging on for way too long and needs to be resolved.

Earlier this month he called on the Government to examine ways in which the link between the Dublin project and the Tipperary project can be broken. It is not fair or feasible to continually delay one project until another is ready to commence stated Deputy Lowry.