Darragh O'Brien (Dublin North, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to speak in support of the Government amendment to this Private Members' motion. Like all Members, I wish to express my revulsion at the recent spate of gangland killings, many of which have been on the northside of Dublin close to my constituency. This includes one family that is very well known to me. It is a terrible indictment of some areas of society that life seems to have become so cheap to many of the callous criminals who operate in our country. They seem to have no regard for human life, nor for the suffering they leave behind for mothers, fathers, sons and daughters of the people they murder and shoot like dogs on the street. Condemnation is one thing; action is another. This Government is tackling crime at every stage but particularly serious organised gangland crime. Words are not important in this context; action is important and it is the only thing that will tackle the issue.

The motion tabled by Fine Gael fails to take note of the progress made in this area. It seems to be a stunt. Since 2007 the Government has been engaged in a number of key achievements in legislative terms and real terms in order to make this country a safer place. As other speakers have mentioned, the number of gardaí has steadily increased year on year, even since 2007. We have come through with a promise to increase Garda numbers to historically high levels. There were 14,500 gardaí at the end of 2009, compared to 13,755 at the end of 2007. Even in these difficult economic times, the Government sees tackling crime and supporting law enforcement agencies as crucial. Record numbers of new prison places have been provided by the Government and further capital investment of €30 million, including an extension to the Midlands Prison, is planned. The Government has maintained the funding of the Criminal Assets Bureau, which is doing a fantastic job and seized €7.5 million in 2008 from the proceeds of crime. This is tackling criminal gangs where it hurts. There is a 70% increase in the number of gardaí assigned to community policing. The list goes on. I refer in particular to the introduction of crucial legislation to tackle gangland crime, including the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act, the Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act and the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act.

This evening I hope the Labour Party carefully assesses how it will vote. It has consistently called for stronger measures to tackle gangland crime. Every Member agrees with this call but when the Labour Party had an opportunity to do something about this, it voted against the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act, which proposed significant extra powers to law enforcement agencies to tackle criminal gangs. The notable exception on that occasion was Deputy Tommy Broughan. Before Labour Party Members cast their votes, I hope they take the opportunity to rectify a clear mistake when they were talking out of both sides of their mouth. They put the civil rights of criminal gangs ahead of the civil rights of the law-abiding citizen.

I and this Government represent the community and the law-abiding citizen, not the criminals. The battle against crime is never-ending and we will never win it. We are committed to using the full power and support of State agencies against people who have no regard for human life. I commend the Garda Síochána for the work it does on behalf of the citizens of the State in keeping the streets safe. The force has a tough job to do. Members recognise how well gardaí do their jobs. This Government remains committed to doing everything it can in real terms and in legislative terms to support the fight against crime. I hope other parties will do something in real terms instead of coming out with fine statements. They could support legislation on the basis of what it will do for the citizen rather than the cheap political stunts of the Labour Party last year.

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