The Labour Court previously deemed the 35 age limit as “not appropriate”.
The age limit for those hoping to join the gardaí is set to be raised from 35 to 50.
Currently the age limit for candidates applying to join the gardaí sits at 35 years old. Anyone applying must be 18 years of age but not yet 35 years of age at midnight on the closing date of the application.
The age limit potentially changing is down to a few reasons – Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said it was to increase the opportunity to apply to a wider net of people. In conversation with RTÉ, McEntee acknowledged that people are living longer and often change careers later in life, and that there are many people above the age of 35 who would like to join.
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee says the entry requirement age for gardaí is being changed from 35 to 50 | Read more: https://t.co/uSc7hZCBlw pic.twitter.com/cfPspyFsuL
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) October 13, 2023
The change in age limit has yet to be approved by government, although McEntee said she is hopeful that it will be very soon.
Budget 2024 made funding available for the recruitment of up to 1,000 new members, despite last year’s target of 800 not being met.
RTÉ reports that the government are committed to having 15,000 garda in Ireland, with the current number sitting just above 14,000.
Earlier this year, the Labour Court ruled that the 35 year old age limit for applying candidates was “not appropriate or necessary”.
Header image via Getty
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