Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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It is not happening in my county. It is the biggest issue in my county at present. One could see that from the front pages of the tabloid newspapers last week and from the Joe Duffy show. Following a very serious incident the front cover of my local newspaper referred to crime in Meath being out of control. A shopkeeper was beaten around the head with a glass vase by thugs. The Mayor of Navan, Councillor Tommy Reilly, who is 73 years of age, had to intervene to save his son in that incident. What is shocking is that a Garda car arrived at the scene, spoke to the thugs and then drove off. It sparked a national debate on the front covers of all the national newspapers and on the Joe Duffy show. It is a sad state of affairs for the Houses of the Oireachtas and the Garda Síochána that it takes the Joe Duffy show, apparently, to solve matters. The Garda Commissioner says there is a palpable sense of people feeling confident but not in my county or my town. A 73 year old man, the Mayor of Navan, had to intervene to save his son. The gardaí are not there. There are no boots on the ground. We do not see it. The context of me putting this question is that the Garda has a spend of €1.5 billion, of which €1 billion goes on wages. The people listening to this want to hear if the gardaí are on the ground doing their job.