Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputies for their comments, some of which were constructive. I want to emphasise that this is a matter of very substantial concern to me. I want to give Deputies some insight into the security arrangements. I am told that the promoters had 511 security personnel present on the occasion of the concert on Saturday evening. That number actually exceeded the number that their licence required them to provide that night. Quite clearly, based on the nature of the concert that took place, it appears as if that was inadequate, but I want to be careful not to pre-judge what is going to come from the Garda Commissioner.

The Garda Síochána had 158 members engaged in providing policing services that night. This compares with the 122 gardaí required on the night of the event that preceded the Saturday night concert. There was another concert on Sunday evening at which there were 122 members of An Garda Síochána.

I have a variety of concerns. Essentially, this concert could, because of the profile of the young people who attended it, in other circumstances have been described as a rave. It was that type of an event. It was a different event than the event that took place on the Thursday or the Sunday evening. I am concerned that the licensing authority did not have adequate regard to the age of those who were attending the concert and the heightened possibility of difficulty that arose from those who were both playing in the concert and those who followed the individuals who were playing the concert. I am not saying that as a criticism of the musicians themselves. I am very conscious that there is an age divide between many of us in this House and those who attended the concert. Perhaps not quite in respect of Deputy Nulty, but perhaps in the context of the rest of us. That was a concern.

As to the issue of whether we can give an assurance to the local community to the effect that this will not happen again, the Garda Commissioner is conducting his review and I am expecting some recommendations to emerge out of it that should provide for, for example, additional conditions to be imposed on promoters of concerts in the Phoenix Park. I do not want to rule out concerts in the Phoenix Park. There was not this level of difficulty with the Sunday and Thursday evening concerts and it would be unfair to rule concerts out in their entirety. I take the view that promoters have a responsibility to ensure that those who attend concerts can do so safely, that there is no sense of menace and that individuals who clearly should not be admitted are not admitted. I am not convinced enough was done to ensure that those who were seriously inebriated prior to the concert or those who were clearly and visibly under the influence of drugs were excluded from the concert. It should be made clear in future that individuals in that condition will be excluded.

I am concerned that the security arrangements at the concert may have been more focused on ensuring individuals did not bring drink into the concert, thereby reducing the commercial benefit to the promoters of the drinks sold at the concert, than the protection of people present at the concert.

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