Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Bill. I, too, commend Deputy O'Callaghan on bringing it forward. I wish to talk about my own constituency, which has been wrecked by high incidences of drug and knife crime. Both of these types of crime seriously affect the way ordinary people pursue their daily lives. Residents in the area recognise the pressures gardaí, particularly those who operate out of Coolock Garda station, are under. However, the response from the Government has been lacklustre, to put it mildly. The situation in my area has become a political football for some. On the one hand, we had Fine Gael local representatives shouting from the rooftops to constituents that a new Garda station was on the way while, on the other, the Minister of State's colleague, the Minister for Justice and Equality, will not provide any extra resources to make that a reality.

The gardaí in my area are under increasing pressure. Part of that is down to the rapid population growth in and development of Clongriffin, which forms part of Dublin's north fringe. While attempts to stem the growing levels of knife crime are welcome, these are just a drop in the ocean in terms of what is required to allow people to feel safe and confident in raising their families. I call on the Government to ensure that capital funding is identified and prioritised for a new station in Clongriffin along with making more resources available for gardaí based in the constituency of Dublin Bay North. We need change in areas in which there is serious crime and not just when some Ministers see bringing such change about as an election platform.

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