Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am still getting used to the procedures. We will be supporting the motion although we have tabled an amendment that we believe improves it.

There is no question but that the issue of rural crime has been significant in recent months and probably for longer. I am aware of several horrific attacks in which people have been terrorised in respect of their property, health, and welfare and safety. This is a cause of great concern.

This has been contributed to by the reduction in cover over many years in the number of gardaí and Garda stations in rural areas. Specifically – this point is addressed in the amendment – a key factor is the proportion of dedicated community gardaí. The number has fallen significantly since 2010 and there is no sign of the position improving. Community gardaí play an important role especially in the co-ordination of community alerts as well as in developing knowledge of the community, the people of the community and improving the local intelligence of the gardaí. We believe they have a significant role to play.

We call for greater powers and scope to be given to the joint policing committees as well as increasing their numbers. As things stand, the county or city-wide joint policing committees are simply policy bodies. A more localised model would allow people to give specific feedback on issues that are happening in their communities. I am aware that some areas operate community policing forums. I believe this should be formalised. There is a role for them in this regard.

We have some reservations in respect of the use of electronic tags without judicial discretion, as proposed in the motion. This does not leave discretion to the judge and the manner in which the motion is worded suggests a person could be tagged without necessarily having been convicted of a prior offence, but merely alleged to have committed an offence. That is a difficulty. I am concerned that the widespread use of electronic tagging would create difficulties. I believe there is a possibility that it would be chosen as an option or alternative form of justice or punishment as opposed to non-custodial or custodial sentences as a form of halfway house.

We need to be conscious of this aspect.

The Irish Penal Reform Trust and Irish Council of Civil Liberties have argued that the unjustified and excessive use of pre-trial detention and electronic tagging impacts on the right to liberty and presumption of innocence. Any proposal to introduce electronic tagging should take into account the safeguards recommended by the Council of Europe, including that it should be proportionate and take account of the impact it would have on families and third parties. In particular, attention should be paid to regulating the use of data collected in the framework of electronic monitoring. In many circumstances, these monitoring systems are operated by private companies, which gives rise to data protection and other issues.

While Sinn Féin has some reservations about the widespread use of electronic tagging, we recognise nonetheless the value of the motion and its intent. It also makes a number of recommendations that would be useful in tackling rural crime.

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