Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I greatly appreciate the opportunity to contribute to this debate. Such a debate has been requested multiple times by Deputies on all sides of the House, be it through parliamentary questions, Topical Issue matters, Questions on Policy or Legislation or Leaders' Questions. I hope the debate is being approached in a positive manner. Like most of the speakers so far, I love being from Dublin. That is something that those of us who are lucky enough to live in the capital, be that in the city or in the county, do not say enough. Whether we have been born here, brought up here or recently moved here to make a home or living, we sometimes get a little defensive and are not proud to say that being from Dublin is great. We are lucky to live in this capital city. It is one of the finest capital cities not just in Europe but in the world. Anyone who has travelled across the world will have noticed that Dublin holds its own consistently in many areas beyond the economic. In social and cultural contexts it is a European and global leader. That should be the basis for this timely and important debate.

Our capital is far from perfect. There are glaring issues that need attention. There is political difference on some of those issues, and that is understandable, but on others I like to think that, regardless of the party banner or label we attach to ourselves, there is a collective resolve and a relative agreement on them. Deputy Ó Ríordáin hates when I agree with him but a couple of the points he made were bang on. They are issues about which I have spoken for a long time and in respect of which I encountered push back, be that from officials or colleagues in my party or other parties. The notion of junior Minister for Dublin is not an absurd one. We see it in countries across the EU, where there is an obvious need to prioritise the capital city from a local government and administrative perspective and that fuels the economic, social, cultural and community growth of that capital. It is a responsible role, one that has been taken on enthusiastically in EU member states, and should not be dismissed out of hand. It merits consideration.

In due course, I will stray into the policy fields that are the responsibility of the Minister of State and the Minister, who has just left the Chamber.

There is significant merit in the idea of public realms and increased pedestrianisation, not just in city centre areas such as that represented by Deputy Gannon, but also in county boroughs and villages - the sort of places Deputies Paul Donnelly and Ellis and I represent. Through the pandemic, we saw how transformative they were and how they were embraced. There is a need for central government to work with officialdom in local authorities to embrace the vision and enthusiasm not just of elected city and county councillors but also the traders' groups and community groups who want to see an increased focus on pedestrianisation, particularly in the city centre.

Although I represent and live in a suburban constituency, this is as much my capital city as it is the capital city of someone like Deputy Gannon, who represents an area in the heart of the city, or someone such as the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, who represents a constituency far from Dublin, although it is not quite as far away as the constituencies of the Minister of State and Deputy Martin Kenny. It is something of which everyone who lives in the State has ownership. We all have an enthusiasm to see our capital thrive in every indicator. People have pointed out obvious concerns but increased pedestrianisation and the real concept of public realm, such as the partial or full pedestrianisation of O'Connell Street, is one area unrelated to justice that would have a significant impact on many, not just those who live and work in the close environs.

Other matters have consistently been raised that have not been pursued, for example, the notion of more open-air public swimming facilities. We obviously have Dublin Bay, which is wonderful, stretching along the coast, but the idea of a public lido in the north inner city, which has been proposed, is an obvious amenity that will not just serve the immediate community. We see how it works in the parks and boroughs of London, and how it can be such an addition to communities for 12 months of the year. There is also the increased support for plans that are in place, that have been funded but that need to come to fruition, namely, those relating to public libraries, cultural amenities and the much-lamented sports grounds, especially in the context of association football, where there is a significant issue with crumbling stadia and the inability to get key co-operation for an entire area. That kind of top-level stuff we all see and enjoy on a daily basis is very obvious.

What we are talking about, however - and the main reason this debate was sought - are the genuine concerns regarding public safety and public order in our capital. Many different incidents have gone viral on social media and have been well reported in the print and broadcast media, as well as being raised in the House, either directly or anecdotally, by Deputies from all parties and none. What this has to come back to - and it is the biggest issue in addressing this problem - is calculated investment in our communities, especially those that suffer the most, not just from small-scale criminality but also from what is clearly organised crime. That is why I appreciated the remarks of the Minister on the new community safety innovation fund established under her Department thanks to funding from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. In its first year of operation, €2 million was invested. We have seen that allocated to very worthwhile projects throughout the country, including more than €250,000 in the Dublin Central constituency, rising to €3 million in this year's budget, which is very welcome.

The clarity I must request, however - this is not directed to the Minister, Deputy McEntee, but more to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Michael McGrath, or whomever holds that office in due course - relates to the fact that in 2021, An Garda Síochána, not the Criminal Assets Bureau, seized €16 million in cash from criminals. I appreciate that the pandemic allowed for a level of policing and a level of return on policing in the context of cash, drugs and contraband seizures that were of a much larger scale, but that €16 million has to be ring-fenced in its entirety and ploughed back into communities because it was not an anomaly. We consistently saw in the years prior to 2021 seizures of €9 million, €7 million, €7.5 million and €8 million. The most recent seizure was somewhere in the region of €12 million. All that money has been taken away from the very individuals and the absolute thugs who run the gangs and try to ruin all our communities, be they in Dublin or beyond. That money needs to go back into those communities that are suffering from the preying figures of gangland individuals who are trying to get ten-year-olds to mule backpacks of drugs across an estate or slightly older people to take a gun or whatever into their hands.

We see where that money can have a true impact on our communities. We see that youth diversion funding, thankfully, has gone up and been invested in the sorts of projects the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, regularly launches, speaks about and shows a genuine compassion for, including addiction treatment and drug diversion programmes. That is where we need to see that money going because that is the first stop. It is not the only solution, however. It will not make Dublin the safest capital city in the world overnight, but it will certainly have a significant impact. That is where we start. It is not necessary to have a political ideology of left, right or centre to recognise that genuine, co-ordinated, structured investment in communities is the first stop in any area and approach to a debate like this. When that sort of effort is made, it must be realised that it is only one strand. I imagine it is the most important, initial strand but it has to be done in tandem.

As I said, Deputy Ó Ríordáin hates when I agree with him, so I will disagree with him on one point relating to policing. Policing has a massive part to play in the re-imagination and reinvigoration of our capital city, especially the streets in the inner city area of central Dublin as opposed to the areas of County Dublin that Deputy Paul Donnelly and I represent. We have seen success with Operation Citizen and the important role high-visibility policing has to play. Deputy Gannon held a public meeting on the subject of O'Connell Street, which is something he is extremely passionate about and has spoken about throughout his career long before being elected to the Dáil. I remember him speaking about it at Dublin City Council. Believe it or not, I was one of those people who tuned into other council meetings to hear what he, and Deputy McAuliffe, as Lord Mayor, said, largely to get ready to mark them in general election debates or whatever else. O'Connell Street is the main thoroughfare of our capital city. In many regards, it is the main street of our country, north, south, east and west. That is where the work must begin in having consistent and constant high-level policing.

I absolutely welcome the announcement of a station for An Garda Síochána on O'Connell Street but the number of officers on the beat on O'Connell Street has to be drastically increased. We see where it has worked around the world, including Leicester Square and Times Square. We are very lucky to have the policing service we do in this State. It is very much a community-based policing service. Its members are not going around with machine guns looking to be intimidating spectres. The service seeks to provide that sense of safety and community outreach. We can be very proud of the work of An Garda Síochána and very glad there has been that increased level of determination when it comes to recruitment, not just of gardaí but of civilian staff. That is key. The 400 extra civilian staff that are being recruited should enable far more gardaí, be they newly attested from Templemore or moved from other districts, to get out on the beat in our city centre and our capital, particularly on O'Connell Street.

In order to do that, we have to meet the aims of an additional 1,000 members of the force. That requires some real acknowledgement of issues, including rostering, pay, conditions, and investment in the equipment. When I refer to equipment, I do not mean handcuffs and uniforms; I am talking about ICT, internal servers and the vehicles and means of transportation which ensure we have what I fundamentally believe is one of the best police forces in the world in An Garda Síochána, and which enable its members to police in a manner that is community focused but is also specific, including ensuring O'Connell Street is a safe place to walk, shop and do business 24 hours a day.

It is also about ensuring that the transport links that serve our capital city are consistently safe. Deputy McAuliffe was involved in the production of a policy document on a dedicated transport police. That is something which is, of course, at the discretion of the Garda Commissioner and his colleagues in An Garda Síochána, if they believe it is necessary. I welcome the fact we have seen increased patrols by An Garda Síochána on the Luas and DART, and in and around Dublin Bus services but, fundamentally, we need to look at a dedicated public transport policing service. It could be run out of the Phoenix Park or wherever else, just like other aspects of An Garda Síochána. It is something that many people want to see. When people talk about a feeling around Dublin, the response is that most crime statistics are down, but the feeling of security and safety cannot be banked in terms of statistics or crime figures. It can, however, be addressed by having that level of high-visibility policing on the street in our communities and on our public transport so that it can be concluded that when serious crimes take place, we see a level of, and attention to, sentencing that is respectful of that.

Most importantly, I think of our peace officers, which includes members of An Garda Síochána, the fire brigade, as had been mentioned, and the National Ambulance Service. Anyone who has the audacity to assault an individual in those organisations who is in the service of the State should know that not only are they assaulting an individual, they are assaulting the State itself and will face a mandatory sentence that is reflective of the need for natural justice in those cases.

I could fill another 13- minute speaking slot twice over, but I will leave it at that. I thank the Minister of State for allowing us to contribute to this debate.

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