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

I thank the Deputy. Again, I appreciate the urgency with which he is raising this issue. We have seen in the past in Dublin, as he mentioned, that where not just the Garda but the community, the local councils, the education bodies and the community groups come together, a huge amount of work can be done in tackling this very issue. We have a project under way and a scoping exercise in Drogheda, the town next to mine, for that very reason. That is the approach we need to be taking overall. The introduction and implementation of the Commission on the Future of Policing puts this at the very forefront. That is the approach we need where gardaí are on the ground engaging with communities but where the sole responsibility is not on gardaí and they can engage, co-operate and work with all of those vital services.

Unfortunately, the management of resources and how the Garda deploys the resources is not a matter for me. It is a matter for the Commissioner. However, I am assured that he keeps this under continual review, and where there is a need to redeploy, move and engage, in particular with communities, that is kept constantly under review. I will commit to engaging with the Deputy, and with the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, on this issue to see if we can come together to support the communities even further. A lot of work is being done to try to address this, but it is to see where we could support them even further.

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