Ms Grace Hill:

I absolutely have not seen such a reduction either. That is not what we are reporting at all. In fact, the opposite is probably the case. We have seen an increase in young people gathering during the pandemic. It is understandable that young people want to gather. We have not seen a reduction in that.

I appreciate the Sinn Féin Deputies raising the issue of gangs. We are constantly raising that issue with the Garda because it can be very intimidating within a community. The street work piece is big. We will get support from the South Dublin County Partnership to run a pilot programme. I am sure other task forces could benefit from doing that as well. Deputy Colm Burke earlier made a point about the great youth services that are available in the communities. We need to be looking outside the box of formal youth services and examining new ways of engaging young people. Not every young person wants to go into a Foróige service or youth café. That is why it is important to look at projects such as Targeted Response with Youth in Dublin 8 and the Ballymun Regional Youth Resource. Other areas should trial this kind of stuff as well.