Justice Minister Simon Harris is to meet with Management at the Garda College in Templemore tomorrow as the controversy over community access to the swimming pool at the college continues.
The Templemore Swimming and Life Saving Club revealed this week that College management deemed their application to use the facility to be a “closed matter.”
Garda management did not approve the application and forward it to the OPW to enable a licence to use the pool to be issued.
Garda management operate the college however the OPW is the owner of the facility. The Licence system was introduced in 2017 as part of an overhaul of governance at the College – a Garda Ombudsman investigation into financial matters at the training facility is ongoing.
Following a meeting last November in Thurles with the then Taoiseach Micheal Martin, the We Just Want To Swim Group were given assurances that the problem would be dealt with and that community access would be provided.
Minister Harris says he hopes that any barriers to community access can be identified during his visit tomorrow when 24 new Garda are to take part in a “passing out” or graduation ceremony.
