Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The criminal acts carried out in Ballyfermot the other day were the responsibility of the those who decided to carry out those criminal acts and attack members of An Garda Síochána and injure a serving member, to whom we all send our best wishes and wish a speedy recovery. I am very satisfied that the full rigours of the law will apply in that case. I have already outlined the active investigation that is under way, including people being arrested, bikes being seized and files being prepared for the DPP. That is the right and proper policing response to a situation which everybody has been repulsed by.

I hear very clearly what both Deputies said on the importance of momentum, if I may call it that, behind the Cherry Orchard board and the project announced last November. I want to assure them that Minister without Portfolio, Deputy McEntee, the Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Deputy Browne, and I are all committed to this. I will meet with the chair shortly but I want to assure the Deputies that the action to recruit the members of the board and engaging locally is very much under way.

I want to reiterate the Drogheda model has worked really well. In my other role, as Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, I have seen how that has made real progress in Drogheda. This is the model we are trying to replicate here.

On the issue of Garda numbers, we want to recruit 1,000 new gardaí this year. That is our aim. It will see more gardaí in every community across the country. That is what we are trying to do here. While I accept the issue about garda numbers, specifically in Ballyfermot, the numbers for the division Ballyfermot is in have actually risen. How those resources are deployed is a matter for the local chief superintendent. I will feed back the concerns of the Deputies.

On the issue of overtime, which Deputy Ó Snodaigh raised, we have increased the overtime budget for An Garda Síochána by €5 million this year, which brings the total budget to more than €100 million. We will stand firmly with the community of Ballyfermot. We will support the gardaí in their work and ensure they have the resources. We will get more recruits in and that is an active priority for the Garda Commissioner and me. I take the point about the Cherry Orchard implementation board and I am happy to keep both Deputies up to date in the coming weeks.

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