It will bring to 550 the number of new recruits to the force since September…
The trainees will enter the Mid Tipp Town college over the next 6 months.
They will be split into two batches of 125 students…bringing the total of new members of the force to 550 since last September.
Minister Fitzgerald says that the Government pledged to ensure that continuous recruitment would take place at Templemore. and there is strong interest from the public in joining the force.
The announcement was made at the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors annual conference this morning in County Meath.
General Secretary of the AGSI John Redmond says recruitment is essential to keep Garda numbers up.
The town of Templemore is set to benefit from the new influx of students too, with some being housed by local families while repairs to the college accommodation is being carried out.
Local Fine Gael TD Noel Coonan says it's great to see the college busy again.
Meanwhile, the first batch of new Gardaí, who started their two year training programme last September are almost ready to go out to stations around the country to begin their placement work in the community.
It's expected they will start that portion of their training at the end of this month
