Harris to be invited to Athlone on foot of “downgrading” of local garda station

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris is to be invited to Athlone to discuss the recent garda operational changes which have left the town without a Superintendent overseeing the geographical area.

Members of Athlone Moate Municipal District unanimously backed a proposal from Cllr Aengus O'Rourke at the December meeting this week calling for the Garda Commissioner to come to Athlone to outline the reasons why the town no longer has a Superintendent, which the Cllr said amounted to a "downgrading" of the local garda station.

The proposal was made against the backdrop of correspondence sent to the meeting from Justice Minister, Helen McEntee, who said that garda operational changes were a matter for the Garda Commissioner.

Cllr Frankie Keena expressed his disappointment that Minister McEntee was “not available” to meet with councillors on the issue of the garda changes in Athlone, and he said this means that “the buck stops with the Garda Commissioner.”

He added that it was “a ridiculous situation” that Mullingar has two Superintendents and Athlone has none.

It was agreed that the municipal district would issue an invitation to the Garda Commissioner to appear before members in the New Year so that they can have an opportunity to voice their concerns about the policing model for the area.