Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

These gangland killings are turning the system into gangland law. It will not be long, if those involved feel they have a 90% chance of escape, before they turn their guns on targeted citizens.

The fulminations were not just those of Deputy O'Donoghue because the Taoiseach joined in on 21 April 1997 when he said he had a message for drug barons. He stated:

Our plan is to arrest you, prosecute you, and put you in jail. Fianna Fáil's plan for zero tolerance will put the gardaí and the community in the driving seat, with a major crackdown on all crime, and particularly on drug crime . . . Fianna Fáil's anti-drug strategy is a tough, totally co-ordinated programme to tackle each of the key players — the addict, the pusher, the drug baron.

Does the Taoiseach admit Government policy to date has been a complete failure and that there is fear on the streets at the level of lawlessness and gangland crime?

See this speech in context