According to Jim O’Callaghan, the number of potential Garda trainees who fail a basic physical fitness test seriously hinders recruitment efforts at An Garda Sióchána.
According to Fianna Fáil TD and the party’s judicial spokesperson, 55 out of 315 potential Garda recruits failed the physical fitness test (PCT) last year, according to Justice Minister Simon Harris’ latest figures. was.
This is despite a new Garda recruitment campaign due to start earlier this year to increase the number of Garda trainees at the University of Garda in Templemore to up to 1,000 and 400 new Garda staff. .
“The government has allocated an unprecedented €2.14 billion budget to An Garda Siochana this year. This level of funding will enable the sustainable and continuous recruitment of Garda members and staff. , fitness test failure rates are impacting the willingness to boost the declining Garda numbers,” he said.
He argued that some aspects of the test were too demanding and out of step with other jurisdictions, including the PSNI, “becoming a growth factor that hinders adoption.”
For example, an obstacle course must be completed 3 times in under 3 minutes and 20 seconds. If any component of the test fails, the entire test should be repeated.
The new hire’s physical fitness test consists of a shuttle run or bleep test, push-ups followed by a two-hour rest, an obstacle course, and a push-pull machine.
Mr O’Callaghan said: Without the bleep test component, the obstacle course and push-and-pull take him 5 minutes and 30 seconds.
“We believe that imposing a time limit on trainees to complete the PCT is leading to a failure to meet recruitment goals and this should be reviewed as an urgent matter,” he said. I was.
Garda news agency said it would not comment on “statements made by third parties”.
However, a spokesperson said in a statement: A Physical Competence Test (PCT) is administered prior to admission to An Garda Ciocana to ensure that the applicant meets the requirements to be included in the Foundation Training Program and to effectively function as a member of An Garda Ciocana have the ability to meet the operational requirements of ”
The statement added that the test is “phased according to gender and age” and “evaluated on an ongoing basis as part of the Bachelor of Applied Police Degree.”
“All evaluations as part of the BA in Applied Policing Program are governed by academic regulations, including a strong appeals and mitigation process. We will ensure that every opportunity is given to meet the standards necessary to obtain a
“Members of Siochana Garda are encouraged and expected to maintain fitness and health for long-term effectiveness. , are part of the requirements to maintain,” the statement added.
