Brexit: More Irish police officers needed for border

The body which represents senior gardai (Irish police) has said more officers will be needed to work on the border with Northern Ireland after Brexit.

The Association of Garda Superintendents is holding its annual conference in Naas, County Kildare.

Its president said "crime corridors" had been created because four times the number of roads are open along the border than 20 years ago.

Supt Noel Cunningham said early planning and resourcing was needed.

He said that with cooperation with the PSNI, garda numbers during the Troubles were at least three times higher than they are now.

The current British and Irish governments and the EU, have all agreed that they do not want a hard border but have not yet agreed on how it will be avoided.

Speaking on RTÉ radio's Morning Ireland programme, Supt Cunningham said Brexit would have implications for "all the specialist units, it'll have implications for all the intelligence gathering units, it'll have implications right down across the country".

The conference is due to be addressed by Ireland's Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan, and the acting Garda Commissioner, Dónall Ó Cualáin.

The Garda Síochána has been at the centre of a number of controversies in recent years including how it classifies crime figures.