Dáil debates

Wednesday, 13 October 2021

Financial Resolutions 2021 - Financial Resolution No. 2: General (Resumed)

 

7:40 pm

Photo of Martin KennyMartin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and the Minister of State for their work on justice. I acknowledge some of the positive things in this budget with regard to the justice sector. Much of it, such as the recruitment of an additional 800 gardaí, is very welcome. We have looked for that for some time. We recognise Templemore is restrained in the numbers that can be trained in any one year. It is at its maximum, so it is welcome the recruitment has happened.

There is a major problem in many parts of the country where people feel they cannot get a response quickly enough from An Garda Síochána and where resources and equipment are issues. I hope the resources in this budget will assist in providing more people with the safety An Garda Síochána provide. I also acknowledge that next year is the 100th anniversary of the foundation of An Garda Síochána. I wish it well in the celebration of that centenary.

We also recognise that when we think of justice and criminal justice it has a link to other elements of justice. As the Minister was speaking, I thought about this from a social protection point of view and how, in many instances, the failure of social justice and economic justice is what brings people into the whole area of dealing with criminal justice. The links between all of that have to be recognised and acknowledged. I accept that the Government, and previous governments have not done this, at last has a tendency now to look towards co-operation between various Departments, especially on issues of social and economic justice and the impact they have on the criminal justice system. Many people end up in a situation where they find themselves before the courts because of the chaotic lives they live, which are basically around poverty, deprivation and all that happens, sometimes, in many areas of the country where we need to put in more resources.

The financing of systems to look after people who are the victims of crime is something we also need to have a greater emphasis and focus on. The continued use of charities to do this kind of work is a reflection of the fact it has not been properly accepted by the Government, or agencies of the State, that it has a bigger role to play in ensuring people who are the victims of crime feel they are looked after by the State. They are not just witnesses in a case but are the victims of something that was a traumatic incident in their lives that can cause long-lasting damage.

We also have issues around capacity in our Prison Service, how it has been managed in recent years and the funding in respect of that. I accept that some funding has been put in place for that.

On the broader issue, most of us feel the difficulty with this budget lies with the fact that there was a sense this was an opportunity to try to deal with the big issues that are affecting society and many people around the country, in both urban and rural areas. There are housing issues and issues around all aspects of government. Many people feel they have been failed. We expected something to happen to make a difference in the areas of housing, health and childcare but it did not. That is the big criticism everyone has of this budget. It promised a great deal but delivered very little. Too little has been spread too thinly and that needs to be acknowledged by the Government.

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