Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The events last Thursday shocked us all. I cannot recall a moment in Dublin that was so shocking. Obviously, our first thought is for the three young children who were attacked and the heroism of their carer and passers-by in a range of different roles. We must think first and foremost about the child, the carer and their families. At this moment I pray for them to have a full recovery.

The riotous behaviour did a disservice to what we should be focusing on, which was protecting the crime scene and thinking of the people who had been attacked. At times in the past there have been riots in Dublin, usually when someone came to the city, leading to the riot, or about something external we were enraged about, but this was the first time where it was about Dublin. As a Dubliner, I can say it did not speak to the city I belong to and the qualities and the decency of our people. It did show the decency and the courage of the Garda Síochána. I forever go back to the quote of the first Garda Commissioner, Michael Staines, who said that the Garda Síochána should keep the peace not by force of arms but through the confidence of the people. I think the Irish people and the people of Dublin sent out a note of gratitude to the Garda Síochána for the courageous way its members stood up to that violence against them. It is important we retain that way of policing. It is not all about force; it is about holding the law through maintaining the peace as best we can and they did it in a really courageous way.

As Minister for Transport, I recognise that Dublin Bus is as Dublin as can be and the drivers are from all over the world. I love that we still retain that tradition, that small thing, of thanking the bus driver when walking off the bus. It is something we are brought up with. That decency is at risk here by people online saying it is all about hate, division, polarisation and depiction of the others in whatever way. That is the real thing we have to protect against. We cannot allow our city to lose that quality of respect and decency, even just the way we might say "Hello" to someone if we are out and meet them. We need to protect that social aspect of the city.

The Government is committed to doing everything to make sure that is maintained. The environment we have in the city centre is an important part of how we build up communities. It is already there; Dublin has strong communities. We cannot let that go in any way. We need to work on getting integration right so we keep a sense of community. We need to keep enterprise and keep business in the city centre. Finally, we need security. If I do not feel secure walking down the street, it changes everything. The Government is absolutely committed to working together to keep those good qualities in our city.

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