Michael Mulcahy (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)

It is appropriate that Dáil Éireann should debate measures to tackle crime and I am glad of the opportunity to participate in this discussion. I acknowledge the contribution made at the beginning of this debate by the Minister, Deputy Brian Lenihan. His speech was open, constructive, free of ideology and genuinely invited contributions from all sources, which is as it should be. The new Minister is a breath of fresh air in the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. In his short time there, he has displayed an admirable mixture of activity, intellectual rigour and humanity. I am also glad this debate has not been reduced to an argument over statistics. I strongly support the Minister when he stated: "It is no consolation to someone who has been a victim of crime to point out that the chances of it happening, particularly in this jurisdiction, are low." Particularly in disadvantaged areas, crime is a reality for far too many of our citizens.

Whereas I accept that all individuals must accept responsibility for their own crimes, I do not believe we should underestimate the linkage between social disadvantage and levels of crime. I receive more reports of criminal activity from disadvantaged parts of my own constituency, Dublin South Central. It is in all our interests to ensure that the benefits of our prosperity and the greatest available resources are targeted at the areas in greatest need. In that regard, initiatives such as the RAPID programme and the various drugs task forces are to be commended.

Crime at community level, particularly anti-social behaviour and alcohol and drug abuse, can make people's lives a misery. Some excellent suggestions have been made during this debate and Deputy Coveney's comments on community courts are especially welcome. Much more involvement by the Garda is needed in local communities. In this regard, I welcome the introduction by the Minister of community policing committees. Unlike England, a gulf has existed for too long in Ireland between local authorities and the Garda Síochána. Local authorities should have a statutory role in community-based policing and public representatives should also be involved. In England, public representatives sit on police authority boards but that democratic input is lacking in Ireland.

With regard to the issue of organised criminal gangs, I concur with those speakers who condemned the cowardly shooting of Garda Paul Sherlock last week and I wish him a speedy recovery. The minimum sentence for attempting to murder a member of the Garda Síochána in the course of his duty is 20 years imprisonment. In light of this latest shooting, the Minister might consider whether the need arises for new sanctions specifically related to attacking or shooting a Garda in the course of his duty.

With regard to the issue of drug smuggling and drug gangs, it is quite obvious that although a good start has been made, far greater co-operation is needed at a European level between police forces and drug enforcement agencies. In this regard, I look forward to a debate in this House on the home affairs section of the new treaty that is currently being drafted in Brussels after the recent European Council meeting in Lisbon.

I regret that there has been a lack of debate in this House with regard to the issue of penal reform and I support the statements made earlier by Deputy Martin Mansergh. In my view, we still cling to the Victorian notion of lock them up and, somehow, the problem will go away. This is a fanciful and self defeating policy that costs the State a lot of money in the long run. The fact is that the deprivation of liberty of any person is punishment enough and, in my view, incarceration should be accompanied by much more progressive educational and rehabilitative programmes to ensure that we can finally deal with the problem of recommitting offenders. Prison should not be a training ground for future criminality.

This is not to say, lest I be misunderstood, that a prison sentence should not be a form of punishment, it should be, but anybody reading reports prepared by the Penal Reform Trust or by the late and much admired Dermot Kinlen, SC, the former Inspector of Prisons, will have no doubt that the State has sadly neglected this aspect of the penal system to the detriment of society as a whole. The harsh reality is that overcrowding, violence, rape, drug abuse, and unsanitary conditions, have tended to harden criminals rather than assist in their rehabilitation.

I acknowledge that the new prison building programme, with modern, properly designed prisons, will be a fresh start in this process and may significantly contribute to tackling crime. I do hope that the new prisons are 100% drug free and that a proper technological solution is found to the problem of crime bosses using mobile phones or other devices while in prison for the purpose of their criminal activities.

With this brief statement I have tried to add my few words of wisdom to this debate and I want to acknowledge the positive comments made by almost every contributor to this discussion.

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