The €10 million plan to bolster policing in Dublin city centre is not being renewed.
The funding was announced by the Justice Minister in late August after several high-profile violent attacks in the capital – notably the assaults on tourists on Talbot Street and in Temple Bar.
Minister Helen McEntee said the funding would be used to make Dublin safer, with Gardaí drafted in from other areas and thousands of extra Garda overtime hours made available.
Dubbed ‘Operation Citizen’, the funding saw an increase in deployment of public order units and Roads Policing units, with armed gardaí on standby.
It also funded “specific planned days of action” targeting known criminals in the city.
The Irish Times reports that the funding has now been exhausted and will not be renewed.
The paper reports that the operation ‘quietly ended’ 10 days ago.
Meanwhile, probationer gardaí transferred from the Garda College in Templemore to support the policing surge have now returned to the college for the next phase of their training.
Overall, Garda numbers remain below 14,000 despite several high-profile recruitment drives.
It means the force has around 750 fewer members than it did in 2020.
The Department of Justice has been contacted for comment.
Main image shows Gardaí outside the GPO on O'Connell Street the night after the Dulin Riots, 24-11-2023. Image: PA Images/Alamy
