Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

I thank the Deputies for their contributions and the Minister and Minister of State for attending. I thank the Labour Party for its support.

It is absolutely essential that Members not only recognise but also comprehensively address anti-social behaviour, and that we do so without delay. We must bring an end to the mindless knife culture. It is totally unacceptable to have gangs of youths hanging around street corners carrying an array of offensive weapons. This is already a criminal offence and I, for one, would like to see those who carry such weapons prosecuted and dealt with by the courts. Why is it not happening?

Anyone caught with a blade, sharpened screwdriver or similar dangerous weapon who cannot justify why he requires it should be brought before the courts and prosecuted. The Minister needs to ensure that this will happen if he is sincere about tackling knife crime.

All of us in this House must acknowledge the role that drug and alcohol abuse plays in fuelling anti-social behaviour. We must find solutions to existing problems and put in place preventative measures to ensure future generations of young people do not fall into a pattern of anti-social behaviour. I am disappointed, however, that Fianna Fáil chose to "spin" the Fine Gael motion as an attempt to ban kitchen knives and search dishwashers. On no occasion was such a proposition put forward by Fine Gael. Fianna Fáil is simplifying the serious debate in a cynical and manipulative way.

We introduced this motion in good faith, hoping to engage meaningfully with the Government on these important issues. Rather than choosing to engage with us, Fianna Fáil chose to spin. This petulant approach does the Government no credit and is an insult to the 36 people who lost their lives as a result of stabbings last year, and to the communities in this city and beyond ravaged by anti-social behaviour.

Last night, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Brian Lenihan, promised increased enforcement of the Misuse of Drugs Act. Given what we know about the abysmal resources with which customs officers are trying to stem the drugs tide, I feel the Minister is placing An Garda Síochána in an impossible position. On the one hand, the Government is unwilling to allocate the resources necessary to intercept drugs at the point of entry while, on the other, gardaí are being told to work harder to detect more drugs once they reach the streets. This penny-pinching has resulted in a lone X-ray scanner and a lone patrol boat, and this makes no sense given the scale of the drugs problem.

Starving customs officers of resources and expecting the Garda to pick up the pieces constitutes utterly dysfunctional government in my view. Similarly, expecting the Garda to deal with the consequences of violent disorder outside nightclubs and bars while extending nightclub hours and allowing 650 new off-licences in 2007 is utterly inconsistent. There are now a staggering 4,300 off-licence outlets across the country. We do not know how many extensions to bar opening hours were granted last year. I asked a parliamentary question on the matter but it was ruled out of order. The matter was referred to the Courts Service, which stated it could not tell me the answer. We therefore do not know what is happening.

Although the HSE has closed facilities designed to deal with anti-social behaviour, it is a professed aim of the Government to eradicate anti-social behaviour. It is as if the right hand does not know or even care what the left hand does in Government and in the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

On the question of alcohol, Fianna Fáil has wholeheartedly embraced the Progressive Democrats' ideology of putting the market ahead of the common good. According to this viewpoint, as long as business is booming, nothing else matters, even if that business involves below-cost selling, a dial-a-can service or an offer of two cans for the price of one or 24 for 12. Once alcohol is being sold to a willing purchaser, the Government will allow it. At the same time, the Government seems somewhat baffled that binge drinking, particularly by minors, is becoming endemic. Hence, we have a proliferation of off-licences while the Minister feels the need to set up a task group to figure out where it all went wrong.

There is a pressing need to restrict the availability of alcohol and to ensure that those who break the law are prosecuted. That only 14 premises were prosecuted for supplying alcohol to minors in 2007 raises serious questions. Two responses are absolutely vital. The first is to embed a sufficient number of gardaí directly in communities. Last night, Fine Gael provided a range of suggestions in respect of how this might be done. The second response is to ensure that the Government is consistent in its approach.

On the matter of consistency, it is a total waste of time and resources to allow drugs through our ports and small airports while expecting gardaí to take them off the streets. It is a complete waste of time to allow a proliferation of alcohol outlets to open and then to feign concern about under age and binge drinking. It is a complete waste of time to train gardaí in Templemore if they are to sit behind desks in stations throughout the country. It is a complete waste of time to introduce laws prohibiting blades and other offensive weapons and general anti-social behaviour without ensuring that they are enforced daily and consistently.

Before Christmas, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin called for a national forum on crime. The Government response was to pooh-pooh and ignore it. The President called for a national conversation on crime and experts speak about parental and personal responsibility. This is all very fine and laudable but the first responsibility must be to ensure a security response in the form of criminal justice action. I hope this will focus the Government's mind on anti-social behaviour. Those in Government who have the privilege of holding power do so at a price — they are charged with ensuring the safety and security of every person living in this State. The Government is happy to hold power but reluctant to pay the price.

I commend the motion to the House. The Minister's amendment does no more than clap him on the back for what he has done and ignores a real and dangerous threat to society. I will press the motion and ask for the support of every Member to send a wake-up call to the Government.

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