Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Garda will tell one that when a small cohort of known criminals is behind bars, the crime rate can drop by as much as 50%. Is it any wonder we have a problem when one in eight is out on bail or re-offending. The figures show us that eight people die every year as a result of people out on bail committing crime. There were 84 cases in the past ten years. All one has to do is read any local newspaper or listen to any provincial radio station to realise this. Headlines in my constituency in recent weeks have referred to kidnap terror, thieves targeting car pools on the motorway, the theft of 14 cattle and a local judge calling for politicians to support the establishment of a special drugs court. That is only a snapshot.

Our role is to offer solutions. I propose, along with others, that the €4 million the Minister has allocated for the community CCTV scheme be rolled out through the Garda Síochána, with the Garda Síochána and others concerned to be data controllers in respect of the local authority.

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