Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)

As I did not get an opportunity yesterday, on my own behalf and on behalf of the Technical Group, I want to express sincere and deepest sympathy to the Taoiseach on the death of his mother. Our thoughts were with him over the past few days. I ask him to pass on our sympathy to his extended family.

Over the past few weeks, everybody has been running around worrying about the euro, the banking crisis and the other major issues facing this country, and we all understand this. Today, I want to raise another issue that seems to be running under the radar, that is, violent crime, attacks, murders, shootings and gangland killings.

Over the past two weeks, we have heard of young men being bundled into cars, a taxidriver murdered and a father blown away outside his home at 7 o'clock in the morning. We all have seen the tears and anguish of the D'Arcy family and Mr. Moses Ayanwole's family, and also we have seen the widespread intimidation going on in some communities.

How does the Taoiseach respond, as leader of the Government, to such crime? Is the Government doing enough to prevent these dreadful attacks? Also, has the Garda the necessary manpower to deal with these major issues? Does he accept that the gardaí on the ground and members of the drugs squad have major concerns, if some of these gang wars and shootings escalate? Will the Garda be able to cope and respond adequately to these crimes? Finally, what new measures can the Government put in place to protect and preserve human life as there seems to be no value on it in recent weeks?

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