The Garda Representative Association wants the next Government to restore their pay to the level it was at, before the recession hit.

It said that all new garda recruits should start on a salary of just under €26,000.

When the economy collapsed, new gardaí had their pay cut by 10%, leaving them with a basic wage of just over €23,000.

GRA president Dermot O' Brien is also calling for an urgent recruitment drive.

"Our message to the newly-formed government is - sit down and talk to us," he said.

"Give us back our pay, give us back what we need to make the job work better for the people of Ireland.

"And the only way that can be done is by investment.

"They should stop looking at us as some kind of financial imposition and start to look at us as an investment.

"That can be done with recruitment, but by paying the members the pay they deserve, the pay they are entitled to."