Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Clearly, the Deputy is giving his opinion on the tax, but I am speaking about the role of gardaí in the maintenance of public order, if there is a threat to it. Of course, people have a right to protest, but, equally, others have a right to go about their work in installing water meters and doing the job Irish Water is obliged, under statute, to do. That is precisely what was happening on the day in question. In the opinion of senior officers responsible for the deployment of gardaí, the numbers deployed were proportionate to the level of threat posed. I am sure the Deputy does not object to the actions of gardaí in ensuring during the recent spell of good weather that we did not have a repeat of what happened on the beaches in Dublin last year.

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