Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. Mar atá a fhios againn uilig sa Teach seo, chímid go bhfuil líon na ngardaí ag titim anois bliain i ndiaidh bliana agus ag an am céanna an méid nach bhfuil á dhéanamh ag an Rialtas i leith an ama seo. Chímid nach mbaintear na spriocanna earcaíochta atá ag an Rialtas amach bliain i ndiaidh bliana agus anois tá aighneas tionsclaíoch fógartha ag An Garda Síochána agus níl an tAire le feiceáil ó thaobh seo a réiteach.

I will take the opportunity to welcome the seizure of a substantial drugs cargo on Tuesday and commend the Defence Forces personnel, gardaí and customs officers involved. The seizure represents a very significant blow to international crime and to the criminal gangs that heap misery on our communities.

It is a timely reminder of how crucial it is that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to tackle 21st century crime. It is also a reminder to all of us how crucial the gardaí are in keeping communities safe. Gardaí do difficult, brave work every day to protect our communities and keep them safe. Too often, however, they feel they are being let down or abandoned by a Government that has totally failed to provide them with the leadership and investment they deserve. Unfortunately, under the Tánaiste's watch and particularly under Fine Gael's watch, morale in the Garda is at an all-time low. Garda numbers are falling as gardaí leave the force. We see that year after year. Targets for new recruits are missed time and again as people do not see a career in the Garda as an option worth pursuing anymore, and specialised units are being disbanded. The likes of burglary and domestic violence units being disbanded in Limerick and Dublin is a cause of great concern.

We just passed the fifth anniversary of the publication of the report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland, and it is a sad state of affairs that many of the recommendations contained in this report still remain unimplemented. It is no wonder that crime levels are on the increase. Communities deserve better. They deserve to feel safe and protected. They deserve to know that if they need help, the Garda will be there for them. Instead, people feel unsafe in their own homes and communities. After 12 years of Fine Gael justice Minister after justice Minister, the Garda is in crisis and the communities are less safe than ever. Fine Gael's soft-touch approach to policing has pushed the Garda to breaking point and ordinary communities are forced to pay the price of Government failure. This is a crisis, and we do not need any more vague promises from Government or more photo opportunities or glossy announcements that amount to nothing. Government needs to get to grips with crime and it needs to do it now.

Sinn Féin has outlined its plan to tackle crime. We need to fix this crisis in crime and policing by commencing the biggest Garda recruitment drive in the history of the State and by ensuring that we have the conditions to retain current gardaí. We need a retention task force to report back in a number of weeks. We need to move gardaí away from non-core duties. We need to publish the Garda Reserve regulations to allow recruitment to resume, and we need to increase Garda recruitment by increasing the training allowance and reviewing the recruitment restrictions. None of this has been done by Government, however.

Now, we have the possibility of an industrial dispute that is escalating. The Minister for Justice needs to be present. Her hands-off approach is not working. We have to ask the question, as many people are, what is the Minister doing to ensure the proposed action by the Garda does not go ahead and that the issues at the centre of this are resolved? As I said, the hands-off approach by the Minister for Justice is not working. It is incomprehensible that she would allow this to get to the stage where the gardaí have to go on strike. When will the Government end the scandal of their soft-touch approach to policing so that communities can feel safe and protected?

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