The Garda Representative Association, GRA, has started its protest against roster changes that are due to kick in from next month. This action sees gardaí refusing voluntary overtime. It is an escalation in a dispute that has deepened and intensified over the past year. It is very concerning that matters have come to this point. I have no doubt the public is very alarmed at this turn of events.

Morale within An Garda Síochána is at a really low ebb as members try to keep our communities safe at a time when policing resources have been significantly depleted. Garda numbers are falling as officers leave the ranks. Targets for recruitment are missed again and again because not enough people are attracted to a career in An Garda Síochána. It is a cycle created by more than a decade of underinvestment, under-resourcing and a lack of prioritisation from the Government. All of this has fostered a climate of real pressure and real stress.

Dialogue and negotiation, which were strained, have now collapsed and those at the table have stopped listening to each other. Distrust has set in, and this distrust is the greatest barrier to getting the right result in this situation. What we need now are calm heads and leadership. We need a Garda roster that works and will ensure the functioning of an effective, responsive police force that creates safe working conditions for front-line gardaí. Of course, for any Garda roster to work in these times, it has to take account of officers' family and caring responsibilities, the growing and understandable demand for greater work-life balance and the need to avoid burnout. I am certain these issues loom large for rank-and-file gardaí and they must also loom large for the Garda Commissioner and the Minister for Justice.

There needs to be a reset, a mending of relationships and trust, a repairing of communication and a real ambition to engage in good-faith negotiation. While operational matters are for the Garda Commissioner, it is also the responsibility of the Minister for Justice to provide leadership and a renewed impetus when a crisis point is reached. Clearly, we are at a crisis point. Standing back from the situation will not assist in achieving a successful resolution. We now need leadership. That includes an action plan from the Government to fix the crisis. We need the biggest ever Garda recruitment drive. We need to ensure we have the conditions to retain gardaí, which means getting rostering right and also getting resourcing right. One practical measure would be a doubling of the Garda training allowance to make training as a garda more affordable and more achievable for young people. I urge the Taoiseach to provide significant investment in next week's budget.

Le rannpháirtíocht agus ceannaireacht athnuaite, is féidir linn uainchláir an Gharda a shocrú a oibríonn. Ní féidir leis an Aire Dlí agus Cirt seasamh siar ón gcás. Caithfidh an tAire, an Teachta McEntee, agus an Rialtas a bheith dáiríre chun an t-easaontas seo a réiteach. With renewed engagement, dialogue and leadership, we can get a Garda roster that works. This is not a time for people to dig in and become entrenched. It is a time for renewed focus on solutions and progress. Will the Taoiseach update us on the Minister's plan to prevent further escalation of the dispute and to deliver a successful outcome? What is the Taoiseach's role in this Government plan?

I want to say once again that the Government supports the Garda and the essential work it does in keeping our communities safe and in keeping us safe. The Garda has a budget of more than €2 billion this year, the highest ever, being invested in pay, equipment and buildings. We anticipate between 700 and 800 new recruits this year in addition to 400 Garda staff.

We also understand how important the issue of rosters is. It is important to the public because citizens need to know that the gardaí are there when they need them. It is also important for the gardaí themselves in terms of work-life balance. That is essential in recruiting and retaining gardaí. The Garda Commissioner and the four staff associations all agree that a new roster is needed to fit the modern workforce and provide high-visibility policing and that is welcome. It is not sustainable that we continue with the roster that was relevant during Covid when the country was in and out of lockdown, nor does going back to the Westmanstown roster fit the needs of the Garda Síochána of today. As the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, said, the only way to resolve these differences is through talking and engagement. I am glad that a series of meetings is happening this week.

The Government remains committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and to keep us safe. I take the point the Deputy has made about the training allowance. Many gardaí trainees going into Templemore are older than they would have been in the past and often have qualifications already. When they go to Templemore, they can be down considerably in their income during that period, all the while having rent or mortgages to pay. I am aware the Ministers for Justice and Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform are working on that at the moment.

It is fair to say that all of us across the House want to see this dispute resolved. It is unconscionable that we would have a further escalation in this dispute. It is clear that relationships have been strained and are very damaged. I appeal to all concerned to re-engage in a calm-headed way. Rostering must be resolved but either party digging in and being intemperate or immovable on this matter will assist absolutely nobody. I agree with the Taoiseach that in the final analysis it is the public who have a right to feel safe in their homes, on their streets and in their communities and who are most concerned by all of this and who must loom large for one and all.

I thank the Taoiseach for his response but could he be a bit more concrete on the proposed actions by the Minister and by Government to encourage, facilitate and ensure the kind of constructive, clear-headed engagement we all desire to see?

I largely agree with what the Deputy said earlier. We all want this dispute to be resolved. We all want a roster that works for citizens to make sure that gardaí are available when we need them, and also one that reflects the need to recruit and retain gardaí. This means a roster that recognises the need for work-life balance and the caring and family responsibilities. Disputes over rosters are always resolved in the end and I have no doubt that this dispute will be resolved. I hope it can be resolved without any further escalation. Meetings are happening this week. The Minister has encouraged all sides to engage and engage in good faith. She has done that consistently. It is not the role of Ministers to get involved directly in industrial relations disputes. That is not the way these things get solved but there is a process within An Garda Síochána to resolve disputes such as this internally. If needs be, the government offices of the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court can be made available.