Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It gives me pleasure to support Deputy Griffin’s Bill to make it an offence to ram a patrol car. We live in a changing society. Decades past, the gardaí were respected and their authority was not questioned. That sadly has changed and criminals ignore the authority of a garda and will do anything they can to avoid arrest. More Garda activity now takes place in patrol cars. There are more patrol cars in urban and rural areas, marked and unmarked. They do quite a good job of enforcing the law. Unfortunately, criminal gangs have become more mobile. If detected carrying out a crime they will do what they can to evade arrest and if that means ramming a Garda car many will not think twice about it. The most horrific injuries suffered by gardaí in recent years have come as a result of criminals ramming patrol cars. Many of these were life-changing injuries and unfortunately some gardaí have been killed.

The Minister of State spoke about the difficulty of setting a defined sentence for ramming patrol cars but it should be benchmarked against attempted murder because that is the risk. Many criminals now drive Jeeps or high-powered, high velocity, heavy vehicles, many with what could euphemistically be described as protection barriers. They are killers. They have the potential to wipe people out in a patrol car that has very little or no protection, like any car that we might drive.

The offence Deputy Griffin is trying to introduce is appropriate. I accept that there is legislation to provide for offences such as this. None of us going to work has to face the prospect of being deliberately rammed but we need to take a belt and braces approach to the existing legislation to deter criminals from thinking they will get away with ramming a patrol car. There is a greater sentence for the murder of a garda and this offence should be benchmarked as something similar to attempted murder.

I welcome the introduction of the Bill and look forward to the Government assimilating it, in whatever way is appropriate, into the Statute Book in order to protect the members of the Garda Síochána.

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