Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Again, the Minister of State is wholly missing the point. I am not for one minute advocating militarisation or using the Army as a back-up to the State. I am talking about having a presence in communities. I am advocating for this in the context of barrack closures, including in Castleblayney and Cavan.

Bringing units of the Army into community facilities on a regular basis, even as part of the training process, would allow people to feel safer. I am satisfied that if a poll was taken on the issue of getting people out into the communities - not in an armed capacity, but as a back-up to the Army - we would solve a lot of the issues relating to burglaries and crime because when there is a such a back-up in place, it acts as a deterrent.

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