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

I think the last time we had a large-scale debate on rural crime was last summer. That debate took place in the context of some particularly horrific and violent attacks. I know that for many people, those attacks have left psychological scars in the communities where they happened. People in many communities remain deeply concerned about their safety in their own homes. This issue has yet to be addressed.

All the evidence and anecdotal experience shows it is undoubtedly the case that visible policing is the best deterrent to crime. While Sinn Féin appreciates that there are other deterrents, we have put police visibility at the heart of our proposals in this area. I have said time and again that there has been a significant reduction in Garda visibility over recent years. A few Deputies, including the Minister, have said they believe there has been an increase in Garda visibility more recently. I have to say I am not convinced. I am aware that some of these discussions are focused on Dublin. It has not been my experience and I am not sure it has been the experience in every constituency. I think there has been an increase in Garda visibility in areas proximate to district headquarters in some specified ways. However, many Garda stations are still at or below 2010 levels. That is why so many stations were reliant on overtime. Many stations in Dublin and other areas are running to stand still. There is a need to address the serious reduction in community gardaí since 2010. The number of community gardaí in many areas has decreased by 75%. There is a serious need to address this issue.

The issue of community CCTV schemes has been raised time and again. It is clear that the current system is not working. Many applications have been made but have not been processed. The CCTV system in Carrigaline, which is in my constituency, is not working at present. There is a need for joint policing committees to have more power to allow priorities to be set at local level.

Changes in bail legislation are not necessarily required. I suggest that better monitoring of bail is needed. I have often instanced the case of Shane O'Farrell. It is one of many cases in which repeated clear breaches of bail conditions were not followed up or enforced. We need better enforcement of bail, especially in rural communities.

I am conscious that crime increased last year, by comparison with 2017, in a number of significant areas, including robberies. In the first nine months of 2018, there were 655 burglaries and 339 vehicle thefts in Cork. Before Christmas, I raised with the Minister my concerns about the ban on Garda overtime. I would be very interested to see the crime statistics for the fourth quarter of 2018. It seems from my anecdotal experience that there was a very significant increase in a wide variety of crimes, particularly property crimes like burglaries and thefts, in the last three months of the year.

I am not just talking about rural areas in this context. There have been significant numbers of burglaries and robberies in Togher, Lehenaghmore and Glanmire. The Carrigaline area, in particular, was hammered over the Christmas period. Hardly a day went by without a new report of people snooping around cars. The town was hammered. In some instances, people who rang in were told that the squad car was out on an emergency call and no other car was available. That is not the fault of gardaí. It is a resourcing issue. Carrigaline is a very significant town, but it is clearly under-resourced in policing terms. The CCTV scheme clearly needs to be addressed as well. That scheme needs to be approved. Major towns like Carrigaline need better Garda resources.

See this speech in context