Assistant Commissioner Kieran Kenny says Gardai will be on alert over G8 summit in the North
GARDAI in Donegal are being mobilised for a massive security operation ahead of the G8 summit in the North.
And cash-strapped An Garda Siochana will have to take the slack for the huge cost of mounting a security operation along the border counties.
Around 900 Gards have been detailed ahead of the meeting in Co Fermanagh of the world’s eight biggest political leaders.
Plans have also been drawn up for special courts and extra detention cells at locations along the border, including counties Donegal and Monaghan, should disorder break out.
The summit of world leaders is taking place at Lough Erne Resort, in Co Fermanagh, on 17 and 18 June and a number of delegations are staying in counties Cavan and Monaghan.the south.
The British Government has already said that it will pick up the bill for the the cost of the security operation in the North.
But Irish taxpayers will have to wait until after the G8 summit for details of the final bill for An Garda Siochana.
Garda Assistant Commissioner Kieran Kenny, who is in charge of the border counties, said the force is in close contact with security services in a number of countries as well as international agencies Interpol and Europol.
Daily intelligence briefings are being held on both home-grown and overseas threats.
“For an event of this magnitude, the what-ifs list is endless,” he said.
“So, in so far as we can, plans will take account of worst case and best case scenarios.”
Asst Commissioner Kenny said there are contingency plans to respond to a “mix” of threats, which includes the risk of local dissident republicans using the occasion for global publicity.
But the Garda chief said they had no estimate of numbers of protesters expected into the country at this stage.
A large protest is expected in Dublin and a similar one in Belfast.
Surveillance of ports and airports across Ireland and the movement of people throughout the island will form a major part of the security operation.
The G8 Summit will be held in the Lough Erne Golf Resort in Co Fermanagh
Eight temporary border checkpoints are to be manned by Garda units backed up by the Irish Defence Forces, alongside rolling checkpoints by mobile patrols in Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan.
Asst Commissioner Kenny warned people living along the border and others travelling across it to expect disruption in the run up to and during the summit.
The Garda has also been working with the Courts Service about the possibility of special sittings and custody arrangements, should public disorder break out or in the event of an attack.
Up to 4,500 PSNI officers will be on patrol during the gathering of the heads of the world’s eight richest economies, including US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Another 3,600 officers from forces around the UK will be drafted in for what is expected to be the biggest ever carried operation carried out by the PSNI.
As part of the huge security operation around the high profile event, a seven-mile stretch of Lough Erne is being closed down completely across three days while the Loughshore Road, Enniskillen, is closed until 26 June.
Authorities in the UK have already revealed they expect the event to cost around £50m.
Asst Commissioner Kenny said the Garda was still in the latter stages of planning and final costs, overseen by the Department of Justice and other Government departments, are not available for taxpayers in the Irish Republic.
“It is a fluid, moving plan. The finer detail of the plan is only coming to light in the latter stages of it, because the countries are voicing their requirements now.”
The Garda chief said the force would give a detailed account of costs after the event.
“Our spending and costs are being challenged on an ongoing basis,” he said