Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I wish to reflect on the anti-social behaviour aspect of the problem referred to in many of the contributions made on both sides of the House. When we try to investigate the cause of the anti-social behaviour that causes such anxiety, worry and concern to many people, one wonders what research goes into providing guidelines on the headings of a Bill such as this and what way it will affect the community.

Community life has dramatically changed in the past ten years because there are now many different nationalities living here and many people are living in estates and are all working which was not the position heretofore. Community life as we knew it is slowly but surely dwindling away and we are not doing anything to resurrect it. If we could do that and get people to focus on the value of community life and of the family in creating a sense of community, maybe we could form a basis for trying to defeat anti-social behaviour. If we do not do that and continue to think that putting youngsters behind bars will solve this problem, from my understanding of what is happening and of youngsters, we are taking the wrong road. Those youngsters are time and again being put into jail. Unfortunately, some of them have been in jail 30 or 40 times. It has done absolutely no good. It has done nothing to benefit the community to which they return. The Government has done nothing to resurrect community life, protect it and ensure today's youngsters will not be tomorrow's criminals. We are heading in the other direction. The problems are evident. The Government can introduce whatever legislation it likes but if it does not take measures to support the basis of society, which founded and grew the Celtic tiger economy, we will lose that impetus and the value of what is there. If anti-social behaviour orders are used as the means of resolving it, we will see youngsters in jail and we will have to reopen the jails the Minister closed because of insufficient space.

Although we have spent vast amounts of national lottery money on providing facilities, at this stage it is necessary to reflect and move the goalposts further to get value for money. To do that, we must involve the community, community policing and the heads of the associations to which we gave the money in rebuilding the community and in regaining the life which was so treasured in the past and which seems to be dwindling from us.

Putting more people in jail should not be the only answer and is not our purpose. Surely we place greater value on community than stating the only answer is to put people behind bars and maybe that will teach them a lesson. The evidence shows it will not teach them a lesson and that people who have been this problematic previously will not be reflective and therefore we must attempt prevention, although not by this mechanism. As I stated, I have seen hundreds of these youngsters coming out of jail probably worse than when they went in. In developing this case, the Minister must reflect and work with other Departments such as the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism, to create community involvement with which we all can work so anti-social behaviour will be a issue of the past. Community life would be re-instigated and in that way society would move forward positively.

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