Garda numbers are now falling behind population growth, with serious consequences for communities across the country and nowhere is that more evident than in Meath. Recent figures show that Garda numbers today are below 2020 levels in real terms, and even lower per capita than they were in 2005! Recruitment has consistently failed to keep pace with retirements, resignations and a rapidly growing population, resulting in a clear downward trend, reduced visibility on our streets, and worsening policing coverage nationwide.
However, Meath stands out for all the wrong reasons.

Cllr Tóibín states, ‘frontline Garda numbers are going backwards, not forwards. In fact, we now have fewer Gardaí on the beat than we did years ago, despite a rising population and growing demands on policing. Communities can feel that gap every single day. There is an urgent need for a targeted and sustained increase in Garda recruitment and, crucially, fairer allocation of resources to counties like Meath that are being left behind.’

In 2025, Meath has just 319 Gardaí serving a large and fast-growing population. By comparison: Limerick, with a similar population size, has 603 Gardaí: Kildare, also comparable, has 432 Gardaí, Louth, with a significantly smaller population, has 363 Gardaí. These figures raise serious and urgent questions about the lack of numbers serving county Meath.

How are Gardaí in Meath expected to effectively police one of the largest and fastest-growing counties in Ireland with such limited resources? How can communities feel safe when visibility is so clearly lacking? And how long more can frontline members continue to carry this unsustainable burden? are some of the questions being raised by Aontú councillors in the county, commenting,

‘We in Aontú have been highlighting these worrying trends for many years and it appears the government continues to allow these trends to drift. Promised recruitment drives continue to underdeliver, leaving communities exposed and Gardaí overstretched. If the government refuses to tackle Meath’s shortages head-on, Gardaí themselves will not be minded to seek postings here in Meath, making our county an easy target for more criminality and less safety and security for all the residents. This is a serious public safety issue.

”Residents across Meath are already feeling the impact, with reduced Garda presence, slower response times, and increasing concern about community safety. Gardaí on the ground are stretched thin, doing their best in increasingly difficult circumstances.” Cllr Tóibín concluded.