Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the witnesses for attending. As I said when I was briefly in the Chair at the start of the meeting, this body of work should serve as a tipping point in terms of real action on this.

We talk about the transport police in the airport being a template perhaps. I feel much safer in an airport for several reasons. There are barriers to entry into airports, they are usually outside cities and it is necessary to pay to get parking, transport or to get on a flight. It is very easy to get on a bus or a Luas tram, however. Crime, antisocial behaviour or intimidation can happen. It can happen in the centre of Dublin city or on the top deck of a bus in a rural part of the country or in County Dublin, which is very isolated. There are great challenges here for the workers and for a transport police force to come in and tackle. This is what must be done.

I would like to give some of my time to Ms Armstrong, Mr. Doyle or Mr. Wynne, as front-line workers, if they wish to share any more of their experiences. I do not want to put them on the spot, but we are now 40 minutes into this meeting. I ask them to expand a bit on what is actually happening to them, including in the context of being a woman working in the area, and on anything else they might think would be pertinent to allowing us to have a greater understanding.