Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

Does the Minister agree that there have already been as many if not more deaths as a result of gangland killings in the first half of this year as occurred in nine of the past ten years? Does he consider that even with Operation Crossover, which was established in November 2004 and which lasted a few months, the situation for the first six months of this year is worse than that which obtained in any other year? It seems that once the blip of intensified Garda activity ended, the situation not only reverted to its previous state but appeared to get worse. Does the Minister agree that the €6.5 million being spent on Operation Anvil will end up having the same effect as the €4 million on Operation Crossover? Paying overtime is not the way to deal with gangland activity. What is required is a concerted plan, involving year-round effort, in order to achieve results.

Does the Minister agree that gangland killings are effectively the worst type of crime and attract the lowest detection rate? A hitman is almost assured that the last thing that will happen is that he will be detected, prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned. Until such time as the Minister puts forward specific proposals to deal with the problem, the situation can only become worse.

See this speech in context