Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I echo the sentiment with which the Minister began regarding the conduct of An Garda Síochána throughout the pandemic. We are all aware of stories in our own communities where gardaí have excelled at what they do.

I wish to raise the widespread issue of public drinking. It is found in every constituency but has become increasingly prevalent. It is now commonplace to see gangs of people congregating and drinking, often causing much nuisance to nearby residents and littering of the local environment. On occasion, this is leading to acts of violence being perpetrated. We all saw the carry on in Salthill the other day and the increasingly precarious situations in which gardaí find themselves. Strengthening our community policing structures would go a long way towards tackling this issue head-on. The fear factor from antisocial behaviour like this can be reduced through public education, high-interaction patrols, problem solving and enforcement focused on nuisance crimes. Positive relationships between An Garda Síochána and our communities need to be cultivated. Unfortunately, we have seen a continual decline in the numbers of community gardaí in the State over the past decade. What efforts are the Minister and his Department making to curtail the decline in the number of community gardaí?

My second question relates to the phenomenon of Covid parties and lockdown parties. Is the Minister aware of the rise in reports of groups deliberately renting traditional student accommodation to which it is alleged people are travelling significant distances, thereby breaking our social distancing guidelines, having all-day binges and terrorising neighbourhoods? I specifically reference Magazine Road in Cork, which also featured on "Drivetime" this evening, where there is considerable evidence of these lockdown parties occurring. Has this matter been discussed by the Government and are there any emergency measures that could be taken to tackle what is happening? Our gardaí need full support and increased resources to protect elderly neighbourhoods and front-line workers who are bearing the brunt of these parties.

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