The deluge of resignations from An Garda Síochána is because members feel so “unsupported” by senior management, one former Guard has claimed. 

Stephen Moore was a Garda for over two decades and spent most of his time based at the station on Dublin’s Pearse Street - one of the country’s busiest.

A few years ago, he decided he had simply had enough.  

“I felt I had hit a career ceiling within the job,” he told The Pat Kenny Show. 

“I was fortunate enough to have done a lot within the job, I wrote three books for An Garda Síochána in relation to the history [of the force] and I did the centenary celebration book in 2022. 

“I had trained over 2,000 Guards in relation to interview techniques but I found myself doing what I started doing when I arrived in the Guards - which was normal beat work in and around Pearse Street.” 

Gardaí on bikes patrol Maylor Street in Cork city, 05-12-2020. Image: AG News/Alamy

He said his “eureka moment” came when he was standing outside the door of an empty Leinster House in the rain at 4.30am and realised he would rather be off doing something else.  

After Mr Moore handed in his notice, he set up Out of the Blue Training for Gardaí who decide they want to change their career. 

“There is a link missing in the chain between upper management and those men and women on the ground,” he said. 

“I’ve spoken to so many members since we’ve set up Out of the Blue, they’re just unhappy, they feel unsupported. 

“The vast majority want to remain Guards but they feel like they can’t.”

A Garda at work in Limerick, 17-3-23. Image: Ronin / Alamy Stock Photo

Mr Moore said things are very different compared to when he joined the force 20 years ago. 

Back then, he feels most Gardaí were very happy with their working lives. 

“They felt supported, they felt management had their back, there wasn’t so many oversight bodies looking into everything they did,” he said. 

“They didn’t have so much paperwork or time spent sitting in front of the computer, they were spending that time within the community - and that’s the work that Guards enjoy.” 

Gardaí in the Castle Park area of Tallaght, 12-12-23. Image: Aoife Kearns/Newstalk

Last year, 164 Gardaí resigned - up by 50% in the space of a year. 

It is, Mr Moore believes, a “fixable” crisis if management change their attitude. 

“How you do that is from the ground up,” he said. 

“You talk to the Gardaí on the street and you ask them what is the issue. 

“They spent money in relation to the latest recruitment campaign… but the best recruiters to the Guards always were the Guards themselves.” 

Justice Minister Helen McEntee has set out plans to recruit an additional 1,000 Garda Reservists by 2026.

Main image: File photo of Gardaí at a checkpoint, 9-4-20. Image: Barry Cronin/Alamy