Gardaí in Sligo are refusing to work in the Pearse Road station due to building being unsafe.

A new station was sanctioned by the government in 2015, however no progress has been made on the new development.

Fianna Fáil TD for Sligo-Leitrim Marc Mac Sharry said it is a "complete disgrace that hard-working Gardaí are being forced to take this action to raise the seriousness of the situation at the station".

He said: "The building has not been fit for purpose for many years, and in fact was condemned by the regional safety adviser of An Garda Síochána in October 2015. The conditions are so dire that there is not even drinking water available in the station. The cells cannot be used, so when people are arrested they have to be driven 15 miles away to Ballymote. The building is simply not fit for purpose. A new station was sanctioned following this report but two years later there has been absolutely no progress.

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"I have raised the conditions in Sligo Garda station with successive Ministers, but all have turned a blind eye. In August this year, Minister of State Kevin Boxer Moran promised that a site for a new station would be identified within "three or four weeks". It's now more than 3 months later and the issue appears to have fallen off the Government agenda again.

"I will be continuing to liaise with members of the force to try and progress the case and will be offering any assistance that I can provide to ensure that a new building is secured as soon as possible."

(CD/LM)