Garda purchased 16 new vehicles in past two years, as more gardaí assigned to Ministers due to rise in far-right protestsThe Garda has spent almost €1 million buying cars to use for ministerial transport over the past two years.
The outlay came following a Government decision in late 2022 that saw gardaí assigned to all Ministers just over a decade after a cost-saving plan for civilian drivers was first introduced. Serving soldier who beat woman unconscious and boasted about it on social media gets suspended sentenceThere are now 37 cars in the Garda ministerial fleet, 24 of which are Audi A6 vehicles, while another eight are BMWs. Also part of the Government transport pool is a Ford Transit, two Hyundai Ioniqs, one Lexus and a Mercedes S 350 that is now 10 years old.
Some of the vehicles appear destined for replacement soon after running up significant mileage. A 2014 Audi A6, for example, has nearly 410,000 kilometres on its odometer while three 2013 Audis have clocked up between 332,000 and 367,000 kilometres each.Is Jack Chambers Fianna Fáil’s leader in waiting?This is a cracking coastal restaurant