Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)

I thank the Cathaoirleach for letting me back in.

I want to go back to the issue I touched on but in respect of which I did not get the winning detail – the issue of child grooming by gangs who are exploiting children. This was mentioned to the Policing Authority recently through community engagement. Children, often between the ages of eight and 12, are being coerced with money, threats of violence and threats of sexual exploitation of the kind happening in communities at present. I hope the Garda is treating this with urgency. The Garda has done an incredibly good job going after the high-profile figures and some of the middlemen. In this regard, we have seen the raids and the extraction of assets. That is all great but one of the consequences is that drug-related intimidation and violence have become worse, more entrenched in communities and more insidious. I hope Mr. Harris is treating this with the urgency it deserves. I am not for one second saying that a child needs to be before the court regarding this issue. Far from it; rather, I believe children need to be protected and wrapped around with all the care of the State. What I am suggesting, in the hope that the matter will be treated with the urgency it deserves, is that anyone exploiting a child in the manner in question needs to be dealt with quickly, because what I describe is happening. Anecdotal stories from Dublin and Meath – we are actually reading about this happening across the country at the moment – are genuinely terrifying. I hope this is the highest priority of the Garda.