According to local radio, Mr Michael Lowry TD has rejected suggestions that the Garda Training College in Templemore is now under threat.
Mr Lowry says he secured a commitment during negotiations on the Programme for Government that Templemore would remain the primary national Garda training centre. He also says a recent review endorsed maximising Templemore’s capacity and prioritising investment there and also at an outreach facility in Tallaght.
The Government previously denied making a deal with Mr Michael Lowry, however Mr Lowry nevertheless now says he secured a commitment on Templemore, during government-formation negotiations.
Templemore clearly remains Ireland’s principal Garda college and is receiving further investment. However, the wording “primary” does not mean “exclusive”.
The published Programme for Government commits to considering a second Garda training college and allowing trainees to complete parts of their training elsewhere. It does not guarantee that every existing course will remain in Templemore, Co. Tipperary.
Mr Lowry’s stronger assurance appears to arise from government-formation negotiations, however no published agreement, letter or memorandum setting out its precise terms can be located.
The Training Review
A Garda Training Review Group examined how to increase training capacity, including:
► maximising Templemore’s throughput;
► establishing a second college;
► using other institutions or locations;
► providing outreach training.
Mr Lowry says the review protects Templemore’s status but concluded that developing Dromard would require unjustifiable investment.
However, the complete final report, Dromard assessment and comparative costings do not appear to have been published.
Until they are released, those conclusions remain Mr Lowry’s account of the review rather than independently verifiable findings.
Dromard Farm
Dromard Farm at Clonmore is approximately six kilometres from Templemore and comprises about 256 acres: 160 acres of grazing land and 96 acres of woodland, together with a uninhabited period house and sheds.
The OPW purchased it in 2006, at the Department of Justice’s request, for a proposed Garda Centre of Excellence.
Planned uses included public-order, firearms, detective, surveillance, dog, mounted and water-unit training, together with off-road motorcycle, four-wheel-drive and other driver training.
It is therefore reasonable to say that Dromard was bought partly for advanced Garda driver training. It was not purchased solely as a high-speed pursuit track.
A tactical training building was constructed in 2008, while part of the woodland was used for off-road vehicle and motorcycle exercises. The notion of introducing a larger Centre of Excellence was abandoned following Ireland’s financial crisis.
What Did It Cost?
The strongest contemporaneous records give Dromard’s purchase price as €4.3 million.
Some recent political statements, by Mr Alan Kelly TD, use a figure of €5.5 million, but no public breakdown supporting that amount can we locate. It possibly could include fees, taxes or subsequent expenditure, but the OPW should now clarify this.
Until then, €4.3 million is the best-supported purchase price.
At approximately €16,800 per acre, Dromard’s €4.3 million purchase price was below reported national and regional farmland averages during the 2006 property boom. It cannot therefore be described as a clear market overpayment on the available figures. However, the property contained substantial woodland and an uninhabitable house, and the State may have purchased a much larger and more expensive estate than Garda requirements justified. The later failure to develop or fully use it turned a potentially market-priced acquisition into questionable value for the taxpayer.
Then came the Rent Controversy
Between 2009 and 2013, Garda College administration rented Dromard land to local farmers, even though the OPW was its legal owner.
The OPW could find no documented agreement authorising the Garda College to take over the letting.
An internal audit initially identified €124,903 in rent. Instead of being paid to the OPW, the money had been lodged into the Garda College Restaurant Account.
The final verified amount was €131,260.80. An Garda Síochána then repaid that money to the OPW on July 6th 2017.
This same €131,260.80 was repaid to the OPW from the “Garda Vote”, latter An Garda Síochána’s taxpayer-funded annual budget. This meant that public money intended for Garda services was used to replace rent that had previously been placed in the Garda College Restaurant Account.”
The Public Accounts Committee report found a serious failure to monitor and control State property and finances, but no public outrage was observed.
Was It A Cover-Up?
There is strong evidence that the wider Templemore financial problems were kept from effective scrutiny for years.
The Public Accounts Committee found that:
► financial problems had been identified as early as 2006;
► recommendations from earlier reports were not implemented;
► senior management had numerous opportunities to address the problems;
► internal auditors did not receive adequate support or cooperation;
► disclosure to oversight bodies was unacceptably delayed;
► a significant number of senior personnel knew about the irregularities.
Mr John Barrett, then Garda Executive Director of Human Resources, alleged that senior figures tried to prevent the issues from “breaking cover”. Evidence also emerged of communications suggesting auditors should be kept “at bay”.
It is therefore reasonable in ordinary language to describe the wider affair as prolonged institutional concealment or obstruction of oversight.
However, no court finding located establishes that named individuals entered into a criminal conspiracy specifically to conceal or steal the Dromard rent.
Therefore it is reasonable to conclude that there is strong evidence of prolonged institutional concealment and avoidance of proper oversight concerning the wider Templemore finances. Whether this constituted a criminal cover-up of the Dromard rent specifically has not been established in a court of law.
GSOC completed a six-year criminal investigation into the wider financial irregularities and sent a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2023. No reliable public confirmation of a prosecution concerning the Dromard rent can be located.
Questions Still Requiring Answers
Before Dromard is sold, the Government and OPW should now publish:
- The final Garda Training Review report.
- The complete Dromard technical and cost assessment.
- Its present valuation, use and rental income.
- An explanation of the €4.3 million and €5.5 million figures.
- Any formal decision authorising its disposal.
- The comparison between investing in Dromard, Templemore, Tallaght or a second college.
Templemore is not facing closure, but political assurances are not a substitute for published evidence. Given Dromard’s history, the public deserves complete transparency before a valuable State training asset is disposed of.
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