PUBLIC TRUST IN gardaí remains high, but fewer people reported seeing a visible police presence in their local area last year, according to a new survey.
Published today, the An Garda Síochána Public Attitudes Survey was conducted between February and December 2023 by Ipsos B&A on behalf of the force.
A total of 7,682 adults and 835 young people aged 16 and 17 were interviewed for the survey. Of those respondents, 89% said they trust An Garda Síochána, while 75% agreed that the police force is community focused.
73% of respondents were very satisfied or quite satisfied with the service from gardaí, while over 60% confirmed that they believe gardaí are effective in tackling crime.
However, satisfaction with Garda service to local communities was 73%, a 2% decrease from 2022.
Of those surveyed, 41% said they had an awareness of Garda presence in their local area in 2023 – 2% lower than in 2022 and 8% lower than in 2021. In addition to this, only 20% said they regularly see gardaí on patrol by car.
The proportion of respondents who felt that police presence was about right in their local area stands at 42%.
When Garda presence was viewed as ‘about right’, the main reasons cited were that “there is not much crime” or that they “see gardaí patrolling in cars”.
Sexual offences continued to be ranked as the highest priority for gardaí (91%), followed by domestic abuse (90%). Other priorities mentioned included human trafficking, assaults, drug offences and illegal weapons.
The victimisation rate for 2023 is 5.9% – an increase of 0.5% on the previous year.
Of the respondents to last year’s survey, 75% said they reported the crime that they had been the victim of most recently to gardaí. The most common crimes experienced by victims were criminal damage, burglary, assault and online fraud.
For the second consecutive year, 53% were satisfied with how their case was handled, while just under half (47%) of those that reported their most recent crime felt that the information received from gardaí was “about right”.
As was the case in previous years, national crime was seen as more of a problem than local crime last year. The perception that national crime is a “very serious” or “serious” problem combined was 72% – this was at a 78% high in 2019.
92% of respondents said they believed that gardaí would treat them with respect if they had contact with them for any reason, while 77% either agreed or strongly agreed that they would be treated fairly by gardaí regardless of who they are.
Close to 70% of respondents continue to either agree or strongly agree that the gardaí in their area can be relied on to be there when they are needed.
On how they perceive gardaí, 82% agreed that the force is focused on human rights – an increase from 79% in 2022.
Three quarters of respondents felt that An Garda Síochána is community focused, with close to two thirds (64%) agreed that the force is effective in tackling crime.
“I am pleased to see all of the positive feedback from those that took part in this independent study as it is a reflection of the consistent hard work of gardaí nationwide,” Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said.
“In order to continue building on the high level of public trust and satisfaction with the services that An Garda Síochána provide, we must listen and take on board the constructive views of those we serve. In a large organisation of more than 18,000 personnel all working towards the common goal of keeping people safe, there will always be areas in which we can strengthen our work.
“There is much for us to take away from this survey, particularly in the area of keeping victims informed, to ensure that we are continually improving the vital service we provide to the people, of Ireland.”
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