Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the publication of the Misuse of Motor Vehicles (Public Spaces) Bill 2012. I commend Deputy Ellis’s work on the Bill. I will support the Bill, which sets out regulations and common sense. I am extremely disappointed that the Government has blown this legislation out of the water before we even get into the serious debate on it. It is not acceptable.

This Bill will save lives and protect public spaces, football pitches and parks. It will prevent many nasty incidents affecting young people, their families and the broader community. This activity in public spaces is a major problem, not only in Dublin but across the country. Clubs contact us regularly about their pitches being destroyed. Young families are afraid to go into certain areas of public parks after 8 p.m. because of threats, violence and anti-social activity, but the Minister for State, Deputy Hayes, and the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, say they do not accept the legislation. That is not good enough when a proposal is put forward to deal with this national problem.

The detail of the legislation gives the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the power, in co-operation with the Minister for Justice and Equality, to lay down regulations allowing the Garda to deal with the problem of the misuse of motorised vehicles in public spaces, designated as such by local authority by-laws. It will also help the Garda, in cooperation with communities, to deal with the growing problem of the anti-social misuse of all-terrain vehicles. We are aware of the popularity of mini-bikes, dirt bikes and quad bikes in recent years, which has given rise to many problems in residential areas and public spaces. There has been noise pollution, damage to public property, threats and violence against families, all sorts of carry-on. This Bill aims to resolve these problems. I welcome the fact the Bill will not criminalise the user of these vehicles but will allow the gardaí to act when they are misused in public spaces.

The Bill attempts to deal with the issue in a sensible way that does not criminalise young children. However, while legislation offers part of the solution, we must also deal with the lack of youth facilities in many disadvantaged areas. On youth issues more generally, we need leadership and greater efforts to deal with youth unemployment. Our youth unemployment rates are among the highest in Europe. This Bill would support the development of an overall strategy through co-operation between the Garda and communities.

As a former member of Dublin City Council, I am aware of the magnificent work it does in managing public spaces. Dublin city has more green spaces per square mile than any other European capital city. There are 30 public parks within a three-mile radius of the city centre and 97% of Dublin city residents are within 300 m of a public green area. Dublin City Council manages 1,500 ha of parks and open spaces, or 2.96 ha of public green per 1,000 head of population in Dublin. It also manages 255 playing fields. This legislation goes a long way towards protecting these open spaces. Approximately 1,000 official matches are played on these pitches every weekend. North Bull Island in my constituency is Dublin's largest park and a UNESCO Biosphere reserve. These spaces belong to the people of Dublin and the parks in the other parts of Ireland belong to the people of their respective counties.

This legislation offers an opportunity to better utilise public spaces. We need to up our game in this regard because public spaces have to be protected and landscaped in a common-sense way. Parks departments need the resources to employ sufficient staff. It gets up my nose to hear people being paid €1 per hour to assist local authorities under the Gateway scheme. People should be employed in full-time jobs with proper rates of pay in local authority parks departments rather than being exploited at rates of €1 per hour.

This morning I read that the Dublin Port Company is again looking with greedy eyes at Dublin Bay. I advise it to keep its hands off Dublin Bay and, in particular, the 52 acres in Clontarf. The national disability strategy aims to support equal participation of people with disabilities. We need to ensure our open spaces are accessible to people with physical and intellectual disabilities.

It is not right that football clubs have to contend with pitches that have been vandalised or destroyed the night before they use them for matches. Dublin City Council and local communities have invested in the region of €4 million in developing these pitches. The Government must listen to the people on the ground.

The Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes, referred to the provisions in the Criminal Justice Act 2006 dealing with anti-social behaviour by children. I accept that these provisions are important, but this Bill deals specifically with the issue of all-terrain vehicles. The Minister of State also referred to the 100 Garda youth diversion projects in operation around the country. These projects do great work and I have worked with some of them in my previous day job in the north inner city. However, I could use 100 youth diversion officers on the north side of Dublin alone, never mind nationally. We need to invest resources in protecting our young people before it is too late.

I welcome this Bill's emphasis on protecting public spaces, young people and lives. It is a miracle that more people have not been seriously injured or killed in these open spaces. I commend Deputy Ellis on the work he has done on the Bill and I will be supporting it.

See this speech in context