Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

Deputy Kenny knows my view on this — one death is a death too many, one crime is a crime too many. We must not portray crime levels as being at the same level as in New York state. Our numbers are high but have not changed much in recent years. Headline crimes may have approached 500,000 in the past five years but the figures for headline crime were the same some years previously. That is a hopeless argument for us to discuss. In 1996, 1997 and every year since there have been 100,000 such crimes but that is not the issue. The Garda Síochána is better resourced, with better laws and equipment. It deals with 500,000 more people and crime rates have reduced when measured per 1,000 people. The Garda Síochána is dealing with vicious people fighting over their patch for drugs and related issues.

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