Limerick ‘would need extra 100 gardai’ without CCTV monitoring centre

LIMERICK would need an extra 100 gardai without the CCTV operations centre in Moyross being staffed, a councillor has claimed.

Staff at the centre in the northside estate monitor multiple camera feeds live around-the-clock, and can zoom, track and follow incidents as they unfold.

They then liaise with the gardai.

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But the future of this centre is uncertain, with €880,000 needed to keep it open and staffed.

Workers in Moyross have been told their jobs are at risk of redundancy.

And Mayor John Moran has used his own funding this year to ensure the cameras kept being monitored.

If the Moyross centre did stop being staffed, the cameras would still be on, but incidents would no longer be live-monitored.

The situation has arisen because the State will often pay for the cameras themselves, but not the workers to monitor them.

At this month’s metropolitan meeting, Alan Dooley, the council’s head of information systems confirmed talks are ongoing with the Department of Justice to plug the funding gap and keep the centre staffed.

“The long-term sustainability and certainty of the CCTV service will require the securing of sustainable, multi-annual funding,” he confirmed.

At the meeting, members highlighted the importance of the facility. Northside councillor Sharon Benson, Sinn Fein, said: “It’s not an option to lose this service. It’s essential. Without it, we would need probably 100 additional gardai. That’s been said to me from the gardai - the amount of resources they would need extra if it went.”

Independent councillor Ursula Gavan saw a motion passed jointly with Fianna Fail’s Joe Pond calling for the retention of the centre.

She said: “If we were to get 100 guards to replace the cost of the CCTV, it is going to be more than €880,000. We need the Government parties to come in and advocate for this. We saw Minister (Patrick) O’Donovan rescue the International Rugby Experience. I’d like to see movement on this too.”

Cllr Shane Hickey-O’Mara, Social Democrats, added: “There was one case in particular - and those cameras led to prosecution and a group of residents on a street felt a lot safer.”

The announcement of CCTV funding in Limerick earlier this month is separate to the future of the Moyross facility.