Imelda Munster (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the fact the Minister of State said the Minister for Finance announced a fund would be created to provide additional money for investment in community safety projects, the community safety innovation fund, from the proceeds of CAB. We also need additional funding for social services to build resilience in communities. It is vitally important that they are community-focused and based and are in communities. They need to come from within communities that have been directly affected. I hope the idea is not to set up a type of forum such as joint policing committees. They have their place, but many feel they do not reflect the communities that are in the thick of this issue. Sometimes they are made up of the great and good. Some have an opinion that they are a talking shop.

During the recession many services were cut or closed and we are now seeing the consequences of that. In my home town, Drogheda, we endured savage cuts to local services, policing and local government. We now need to build up youth and addiction services, in particular, to protect our young people from getting dragged into this type of crime scene all over again. Drogheda is the largest town in Ireland, but it is fair to say it has probably suffered more than most large towns. We experienced serious problems when the drug feud erupted. There was violence, extortion, arson, assault and murder. It ripped communities apart and sucked young people into lives of drug addiction and crime. The fear and terror that instilled right across the community is something we never want to see again.

The Minister for Justice, as we know, commissioned a report from Mr. Vivian Geiran on Drogheda which was published in March. The report laid bare for all to see the long-lasting effects of austerity and cuts to services in Drogheda. The two main findings were the need to improve inter-agency co-operation and the need for increased resources and additional services. We hear that over and over again. They are the two obvious recommendations, but there are more than 70 recommendations in total in the report.

I welcome today's announcement of the establishment of the Drogheda implementation board - it will be headed by Mr. Michael Keogh - as a good first step. Another first step I welcome is the statement by Mr. Martin O'Brien that the Louth and Meath Education and Training Board, LMETB, will host the new structures to deliver services in Drogheda. However, there are concerns in Drogheda. The Minister stated today that the implementation plan would be published before the summer break, which is next week. I hope that the plan will clarify matters, as we have no clear idea of the plan, details, timeframe, funding or whether all of the 70 plus recommendations will be implemented.

The Minister of State said that the Government would not oppose the Bill, which is okay, but neither will the Government go along with it. The chief superintendent of the Louth and Meath division stated publicly that he would be in favour of CAB's proceeds being ring-fenced for the communities directly affected by the drugs feud and gang wars. The joint policing committees, JPCs, have also stated that publicly. I take this opportunity to commend Chief Superintendent Christy Mangan and his team on their work throughout the feud. When we eventually got the additional resources, the team did Trojan work with Operation Stratus.

A great deal of work went into the report. There was widespread consultation. More than 70 recommendations were made, each and every one of which is as worthy as the next. The board is being set up and people have been tasked, but we have heard nothing. It is important that there be follow through. We need timeframes and we need to know exactly how many, if not all, of the recommendations will be implemented. If we are ever to get to the root of this problem, we must invest in communities and address the decades-long neglect of Drogheda. We must get community spirit back in the town, address addiction services and so on.

I will wait until the Minister's announcement next week. The devil is in the detail. We will see what the timeframes and proposals are and what funding will be provided to enact those proposals.

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