Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The "Prime Time" special on O'Connell Street last night revealed the reality of what so many of us already know, which is that we have allowed the main street of our capital city to fall into decline. We also know, however, that policing is a problem across the city centre and not just on O'Connell Street. Indeed, in my area, in the south inner-city, many constituents have expressed serious concerns to me about safety. One local resident spoke about someone having been arrested outside his house who was wielding a knife at 11 a.m. Clearly, therefore, a stronger response is required from the Garda.

I have tabled several parliamentary questions on this matter. The Ministers for Justice; Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, and Enterprise, Trade and Employment have all said they are satisfied that the various Garda operations in the area are sufficient. Can it be ensured that a greater number of gardaí are recruited to make sure we have community policing and visible foot patrols across the city centre area? In 2022, 800 new gardaí were meant to be recruited, but just 24 were added in the first eight months of the year and I understand that only 460 new members of the force are expected to have either completed or started training by the end of this year. Can the Government ensure, therefore, that we will see the numbers of extra gardaí on the streets that we were promised in the budget? It was promised that we would see 1,000 extra gardaí. Is there any chance of this being secured?

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