711. Deputy Máire Devine asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of electronic devices collected by An Garda Síochána for technical examination from witnesses/complainants in the course of criminal investigations under the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020; the average length of time between collection of these devices and when technical analysis was begun; the average length of time between collection and when the device was returned to its owner; and the maximum length of time between collection and when the device was returned to its owner, from 9 February 2021 to 30 November 2025, by district, offence name and year, in tabular form. [70175/25]

I am advised that for operational reasons, An Garda Síochána are not in a position to provide figures for this request.

The Garda authorities have informed me that a disproportionate amount of Garda time and resources would be required to collate the data requested, relative to the information sought. The category of electronics covers phones, laptops, smartwatches and a wide range of other devices which are commonly collected in the course of criminal investigations, for a variety of reasons.

Furthermore, as investigations have no defined time frame, due to the nature of the investigative process, and the collation of data in respect of the time periods sought would require an extensive trawl of cases, it is not possible to provide a breakdown of the detail as requested by the Deputy.