Minister Eamon Ryan will be provided with an armed protection officer who will cycle around Dublin with him making sure he is safe. The move comes as security around Government ministers is stepped up due to the threat from protest groups, including those on the far right.
Mr Ryan, who is minister for the environment, is an avid cyclist and uses his bike for commuting to work, in and out of Dáil Eireann, while also cycling rather than using a car whenever he can.
As part of the new security measures being put in place, Government ministers will once again be accompanied by armed members of the Garda, the Irish police force. This arrangement will mostly involve the politicians having armed drivers in ministerial cars supplied by the state.
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However, as Mr Ryan mostly cycles, the security detail is to be provided to him in the shape of an armed protection officer who will cycle around Dublin with him. It is the first time an armed protection officer will travel by bicycle.
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The Irish Independent today reports Mr Ryan will not always be accompanied by an armed officer on a bike as the officer could also be in a car, depending on the circumstances.
"There was a decision made by An Garda Síochána that we all now (as ministers in Cabinet) will have protection officers," Mr Ryan said. “That’s their call in terms of security.
"I suppose they will have to be flexible in my case because I will still be cycling. But that’s something I have to work on with An Garda Síochána, to make sure it works for them as well as for me. I have had a very good record in the past in having worked with the gardaí, and I always found them really supportive."
He pointed out the Garda has had officers patrolling on mountain bikes for years though he had not "seen as many of them as I used to". He would now be "working with the guards to make sure" having a protection officer on a bike with him at times "works for them in whatever way, as well as for me".
