Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Since becoming Minister, I think the public has had a lot of confidence in An Garda Síochána. We know from the statistics published by the Central Statistics Office that the level of crime overall is down by about 7.5%, that the number of burglaries is down by in excess of 8%, that figures in 12 of the 14 categories of crime are down, that we see important arrests on a daily basis by An Garda Síochána, that there are a lot of bad people currently serving lengthy prison sentences as a consequence of successful investigations conducted by An Garda Síochána, that there are major trials under way of great importance as a consequence of major investigations conducted by An Garda Síochána, that there has been a reduction in the level of recidivism and that we are seeing fewer young people engaged in crime. The Garda diversion programme is hugely successful, keeping young people out of the courts and providing alternatives to deal with young people who get into trouble with the law. There are a lot of reasons the public should have very substantial confidence in An Garda Síochána. That is not taking away in any way from the importance of ensuring we have a watchdog like GSOC operating with full public support, confidence and full integrity. The people can be assured that, if there are allegations of Garda misconduct, GSOC will properly engage in the appropriate investigations when such complaints are made.