Special Council meeting called to ensure funding secured for Moyross CCTV monitoring centre

SINN Féin councillor Sharon Benson has called a special meeting of Limerick Council as part of her efforts to ensure the CCTV...

SINN Féin councillor Sharon Benson has called a special meeting of Limerick Council as part of her efforts to ensure the CCTV Monitoring Centre at Moyross continues to operate without fears of a funding loss.

The City North representative stated that it is essential to public safety that the CCTV monitoring centre in Moyross is funded into the future by the Department of Justice. The centre monitors CCTV cameras across Limerick and its funding has been reduced over recent years.

“This facility is vital to the safety and security of residents across Limerick. The more than 365 cameras monitored at the centre don’t just cover our regeneration areas but cameras across Limerick. We simply cannot afford to lose this service, a service that Gardaí see as vital in their crime prevention efforts,” Cllr Benson told the Limerick Post .

The Sinn Féin woman wants this service to be funded into the long term and has now called for an urgent special meeting of Limerick Council to ensure that this is highlighted with the Minister for Justice.

“As a Council, we will be inviting the Minister for Justice to the monitoring centre, and to meet with stakeholders, so that he can see for himself the immense value this service provides to Limerick communities,” she added.

The service, that costs €1.2million per annum, faced a funding shortfall last year that was bridged by funds provided by Mayor of Limerick John Moran. The CCTV service has been funded by the Department of Housing Local, Government, and Heritage to date.

“This service is too important to lose. My party colleague, Deputy Maurice Quinlivan, raised the issue at the Oireachtas Housing Committee and has written to the Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan, to ensure that his Department fund the project this year and into the future,” she said.

“Speaking to Gardaí in Limerick, it has been suggested to me that an additional 100 Gardaí would be required to fill the void that a loss of these CCTV cameras would create. These cameras have aided Gardaí in protecting local communities and the footage recorded has also been used in numerous criminal prosecutions.”

Cllr Benson said that “the continued operation of this centre must be guaranteed, and I believe the responsibility lies with the Minister for Justice to ensure that it is. The centre is monitored by Garda vetted community members and not only provides security to residents but employment to the centre’s operators.”