Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)

I welcome this motion as it serves to highlight a very serious problem which is devastating our communities, namely, the increase in anti-social behaviour and the need to bring forward measures to prevent further violent attacks in our communities.

Law and order seems to be a thing of the past and we are seeing more and more incidences of young offenders taking the law into their own hands at the cost of innocent lives. Anti-social behaviour is visible everywhere and often escalates into more serious crime, such as the brutal murder of two young Polish men in Drimnagh last week.

Since the tragic events of last week, there has been an outpouring of solidarity with the families of the victims. I have witnessed at first hand the overwhelming response from the local community, who feel angry and disgusted at the savagery of this attack. This was not a racially motivated attack; it was a case of mindless violence and a total disregard for human life. Following this unprovoked act of violence which has left two families and a community searching for answers, it is vital that we engage in positive action to try to prevent such horrific attacks happening again.

It goes without saying that the youths who are responsible for this awful crime must be made accountable and brought to justice. People who are capable of committing these hateful crimes must learn a respect for the law and a respect for human life. What has become of our society that people young and old no longer feel safe as they walk down the street where they live? Why is it that so many people close the door to what is happening on the street outside? The answer is fear and anxiety.

On my travels around my constituency, I frequently see groups of young people hanging around on corners and behaving in an intimidating manner, instilling fear in passers-by. It is unacceptable that in a time of greater prosperity in this country, the basic values of respect, responsibility and caring for others, seem to count for so little. Of course, these youths represent a small minority but unfortunately theirs are the actions that all too often have a devastating effect across the community. Sadly, violence on our streets is becoming the norm. The use of dangerous weapons is increasing and resulting in even more serious and life-threatening attacks. It is high time the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform committed to tackling knife crime which is becoming so commonplace on our streets.

The misuse of alcohol and drugs is clearly a factor in the marked increase in violence on the street. Children as young as ten can now stop an adult on the street to get them to buy alcohol for them at the local off-licence. Teenagers are experimenting with a huge variety of drugs from cannabis to heroin and cocaine. Too often we see young people strung out on alcohol as they huddle together in groups in the evening. This is a recipe for disaster and we need to tackle this problem head on before more innocent people lose their lives.

Many of the young people who are considered at risk are born into family circumstances where their destiny has already been mapped out. It is a known fact that from the first visit of the public health nurse, young children at risk can be identified, but if there is no intervention at this early stage, they can embark on a cycle of dysfunctional behaviour. For many children intervention at pre-school and primary school can help to steer them in the right direction. Young people need to learn the risks involved in dabbling in drink and drugs, and also need to be educated about their social and community responsibilities, including respect for others and above all for human life. Individuals need to take responsibility for their actions but responsibility also lies with parents and family members. Many children coming from dysfunctional families come from a background of anti-social behaviour. However, I have five children ranging from 26 to 14 and frequently, no matter where they are going, I ask them where they are going and with whom, and what they are doing. This is my responsibility as a parent and I take it very seriously.

In recent years I have had the privilege of being part of a community policing forum. My personal experience of it has allowed me to be in touch with the community and get involved with the gardaí on the ground. It is great to see people knowing the community garda by his first name and the same is true for him. It is great to see them walking into the local youth club and participating in activities with some of the children. This is what is needed. We do not need gardaí standing on street corners. They need to be around and involved. This is the only way local crime can be tackled in a community with young people. However, the bottom line is that we do not have enough community gardaí and they are not visible. In Dublin South-Central, we have six in Sundrive Road, six in Crumlin, six in Ballyfermot and three in Inchicore to service a population of 122,000 people. In God's name how is that enough?

Community support is very important in making the streets safer. Members of the community must be the eyes and ears, like Neighbourhood Watch used to be and still is in many areas. For this to happen we need people to be committed to being involved in their community and recognise that they have a major role to play. Community supports and facilities are very important in tackling anti-social behaviour. We must consider what young people want and how they prefer to spend their time. We need to come away from what we have known in the past as the normal youth club setting, which some young people no longer wish to be part of. We need to identify with them that we live in 2008. We need to bring certain activities of their choice to them and to help them along. We have a very positive choice to make in the future for young people. Not every young child wants to be part of a football team, a GAA club or normal youth club activities. They want certain venues to go and sit or hang out, as they say. A venue such as the Base in Ballyfermot is an ideal place for young people to come together and support each other.

It is important that we support the call by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin to hold a community summit where people from the community can address the problems of violence in our society. We need participation from the ground up. In order for this to work we also need support from the Government, and statutory bodies such as the HSE, as well as social workers, gardaí, our local GPs and the religious communities. I wish to echo the words of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin at the vigil in Mourne Road last night when he said: "We cannot just leave community involvement to moments of tragedy alone." I urge the Government to support the Fine Gael motion. This is a time for action and not words.

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