Mr. Drew Harris:

Our approach is set out not only in the foundations of the Constitution but also in the European Convention on Human Rights, which has a lot to say about jurisprudence around the policing of protests and what is acceptable and what is not in a democratic society. What is not acceptable in a democratic society is any sense of violence, intimidation or harassment of individuals. We welcome the new legislation this week to further the strength of the harassment legislation towards stalking. We recognise very much the impact of that.

As the Deputy says, the situation has deteriorated in recent years. We probably saw the beginnings of that during Covid. Things have moved on since then and in some ways have been exacerbated, particularly given that the numbers who have reached our shores seeking international protection have brought an extra element to this. Our approach has been to police these events and to facilitate protest within the law but then to deal with those who break the law, either by arrest at the time or following through on identification and subsequent report to the DPP. I think in all the major instances that people are aware of where there has been public disorder, there have always been follow-on investigations where individuals have been reported to the DPP. That is the case in respect of not only the protest nearby on Mount Street but also the protest here on 20 September.

Individuals who have extreme views and, as the Deputy said, views which are contrary to a democratic society such as ours, have now in effect set out their stall. In that case, we know how to respond. That was made clear in terms of the policing operation that was put in place to protect the Houses of the Oireachtas on budget day. It is regrettable that we have to put out such a scale of operation, but the events of 20 September made it clear to us that it was proportionate and warranted. The protection of these Houses is a priority for us, certainly. The protection of our democracy, which includes all politicians, not only those sitting here but also local councillors, is a priority for us. We undertook to review the strategic guidance. I have reached out to various groups that have been impacted. I met with representatives of those who were particularly impacted by the protest in Cork and, as a result of that, I said to them that we would review the strategic guidance. That is already under way.

In effect, these individuals have shown their hand in recent months and we respond to that in then knowing what their intent is. That then informs the policing operation we put in place in terms of our ability to make arrests, interdict on the day and then follow through investigations. The committee can therefore be assured that we are absolutely committed to protecting people going about their legitimate business. Protest can be a very legitimate function in our society, and we have seen plenty, if not hundreds, of examples of protest every year where all these competing factors are managed. If, however, people wish to engage in breaking the law through violence, disorder and intimidation, it is our business to deal with that.