Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this issue as it is highly topical. On the first day of a new Dáil term, people look to Deputies to provide some hope and positivity on the issue of dealing with crime. As I have stated previously, the Government is failing to address crime in rural areas and in the capital. People need to be given hope, particularly with regard to the crimes of burglary and assault.

Since the Dáil last met in July, shocking statistics have come to hand which show that crime is out of control. The Central Statistics Office, an independent body, reported that the incidence of burglary increased by 8% in the 12 months to the first quarter of 2015. Persons who had been freed on bail were found to have committed 8,077 burglaries in the period from 2011 to date. The issue is not only one of statistics, however, as there are real human stories behind these crimes. The previous speaker noted the unacceptable level of crime in Littleton, County Tipperary. A couple of weeks ago, a tragedy occurred in Doon in my constituency when a man by the name of John O'Donoghue came across a burglary being committed in his house in broad daylight and died as a result of the shock of being confronted by the two burglars. The garda who apprehended the persons carrying out the burglary had to use his own car, which is far from acceptable. It was reported in the news yesterday that a 90-year-old woman in County Wicklow, Ms Eva Sutton, had spent the past two weeks in hospital after being beaten up in her home. We are told she may not return home.

More gardaí and tougher legislation are needed. I proposed legislation providing for mandatory sentences for those convicted of assaulting elderly people or committing serial burglaries. It is high time we sent out a strong legislative message to the small number of people who are scouring the countryside and terrorising old people in burglaries that we are serious about this issue. I ask the Minister to do something about this, because Government action in this area has not been good enough.

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