Gardaí on the streets of Belfast? Well, one day certainly (though maybe not under that name) but in January 2013?
According to the internet-based news site Belfast Daily, in a story tagged “exclusive“, some 200 members of An Garda Síochána are now in Ireland’s second largest city serving alongside the PSNI, the regional paramilitary police force in the north-east of the country:
“THE PSNI has drafted in 200 Garda officers to bolster riot squad numbers in Northern Ireland.
Belfast Daily can reveal that the deployment of Irish police specially trained in public order duties followed telephone discussions between PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott and Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan in recent weeks.
The bill for the Garda officers wages will be met by the Treasury in London under a special security contigency budget.
A senior security source told Belfast Daily that the Garda officers were needed because the PSNI was at “breaking point”.”
Does this sound even remotely true? Certainly social media in the British Unionist community is fairly buzzing with the claim but I believe most people will greet it with scepticism. However, while it may not be true now, as I indicated above, it will be true in the years to come. Eventually we will have a regional, semi-autonomous police service in the north-east of Ireland, within a reunited Ireland, that will rely on An Garda Síochána for support. It just seems that the Belfast Daily has jumped the gun somewhat (so to speak!).
Meanwhile the anti-democratic demonstrations and rioting in the north of the country by extremists from the British Unionist minority is given a caustic examination over on Its A Political World, the group-blog of the Politicalworld forum. The Q&A with a “decent, Christian protester” is well worth reading.
AN SIONNACH FIONN 
There may be a scintilla of truth – Billy Sammy Davy and Robbie in the PSNI/RUC/B Specials do not like baton charging fellow lodge members. So drafting in a few home boys from Templemore could be an option. Remember when the chips are down it is all hands on deck (sorry for mixed metaphor) What I mean is – when Greece ran out of tear gas it was Germany and Israel who resupplied them almost at once.
LikeLike
That was great fun reading the “Interview” you linked to. I know the 200 Gardai story was nonsense but I think there is some form of agreement in place for secondment of officers between both forces, perhaps just at a senior level
LikeLike
Here is a Freedom of Info request on it and a recent Irish Indo article. Limited exchanges are now built into the North-South system on policing.
I enjoyed the fact that the 200 gardaí claim aggravated Nelson McCausland so much 😉
LikeLike