Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is great to see such a broad church of groups coming together. The fact that Oireachtas Members know many of the witnesses means that they are effective in lobbying. I am glad that they defined aggressive begging because I wondered what it was. It is a phenomenon in most cities, but it is difficult to find best practice in dealing with it. I suggest the best way of dealing with it is a summit similar to what is being proposed tomorrow to deal with homelessness. This has to be dealt with head on. It is not good for the city and is certainly not good for those who are begging. If such a summit or task force, to which Deputy Mac Lochlainn referred, were established, it should include representatives of the groups appearing here today, together with NGOs, local authorities and An Garda Síochána. That would push this matter forward.

Although technically it may not be considered begging, I would also include people constantly selling lines with buckets. They can be extremely aggressive. Would the witnesses consider that to be aggressive begging, albeit by well-dressed people?