Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. As he clearly outlined, this is an issue and an area of concern that falls under a number of Departments and Ministers. The Deputy mentioned particular groups and funding and, unfortunately, while I cannot help in that area, I will outline the area that falls under my remit, which is the work of the Garda, and I certainly would be happy to speak to him afterwards if there is further work that we can do.

I am very conscious of the impact of antisocial behaviour caused by this type of issue and the impact it has on the quality of life not just of residents within local communities but also of those working in those communities and visiting our towns and cities. Gardaí are working very hard to try to tackle this and all forms of criminality in our communities and urban areas to try to make them safer for all members of society. I am assured that the occurrence and the prevalence of crime and antisocial behaviour, including drug dealing, is constantly monitored at national and local level by Garda management to ensure that appropriate policing responses are designed and delivered, as appropriate, given the area or considering what is happening in the area.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the specific area of interest to the Deputy is policed by three Garda stations, all located within the Henry Street division. It has Henry Street, Roxboro Road and Mayorstone Park. As at the end of August 2020, there are 453 gardaí assigned to those three stations. That is an overall increase of 7% since 2015, up from 422. In addition, these Garda members are supported by 60 Garda staff members representing an increase of almost 67% since 2015, again up from 36. The Garda staff levels support the redeployment of gardaí from the administrative posts to the more operational policing duties where their training, expertise and ability to engage with the communities on the ground is used to best effect.

In addition to that, the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau leads in tackling all forms of drug trafficking and the supply of illicit drugs in Ireland. It is supported by the divisional drugs unit, which tackles drug-related crime on a local basis throughout the country. I am informed by the divisional drug units that they are now established in every Garda division.

An Garda Síochána also remains committed to tackling the supply of drugs by supporting local communities through various preventative and detection initiatives and engagement with local and regional drug and alcohol task forces. There are also the Garda youth diversion programme and projects, the Garda schools programme, the joint policing committees and the community policing forums. It is not just about the number of gardaí we have but how they engage with the different forums and, in turn, with the communities. There should be a whole-of-community approach.

I am pleased to say that, overall, these Garda measures have continued unabated during the Covid-19 pandemic, the additional demands on policing, and the range of the public health restrictions we have seen over the past six months. The Garda Commissioner emphasised at the very outset of the Covid-19 pandemic that An Garda Síochána's policing measures to respond to Covid-19 would not affect Garda resources assigned to special units, in particular and including the drugs units.

The Deputy might also be aware that the Central Statistics Office, CSO, published its recorded crime statistics for quarter 2 of 2020 earlier this week. Increases in simple possession and drugs for sale or supply have contributed chiefly to the overall increases in certain drugs-related offences recorded by the CSO. That is the reason the multi-strand Garda response I outlined previously is so important in all of this. The uninterrupted policing of organised crime at a national level and the strength of divisional drug units at a local level during the policing of Covid-19 has undoubtedly contributed to the recent success in seizing controlled drugs and in the apprehension of those involved in the sale and supply of the substances involved.

I take the Deputy's point and acknowledge the challenges that the courts have been facing, in particular in recent months. They have made every effort to try to deal with the more severe cases but a backlog has arisen and, since September, there has been a concerted effort to try to reduce that backlog. There is always a place for me, as Minister, to try to improve the overall structures and the way the courts operate, including the criminal courts. I will be bringing forward further criminal justice legislation throughout this term to allow us to try to improve the overall ability of people to go through the court process and to speed up that process. I might come back to the Deputy on that.

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