Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Last week, the Taoiseach announced the formation of a task force to make Dublin a more attractive and safer city. Of course, I strongly welcome the formation of this task force. It is long overdue. Much of Dublin city centre feels menacing when walking around it. I have consistently raised the concerns of the communities who actually live in the inner city. The inner city is their home and their front garden. It is where they are raising families. These communities feel utterly abandoned by Government.

Last week, two young girls were attacked in the middle of the day. The attack has traumatised the entire community and yet the individual involved was released on bail. What message does that send to the family of these two girls? This family is terrified and traumatised. I spoke with the mother of the two girls and the fear this family has, knowing that this man is back out wandering the streets while waiting on a court date, is traumatising for them. The children are afraid to leave their mother. They are afraid to go to school. Despite being the victim in this, the mother has been left with absolutely no supports. She has not been offered counselling support, therapy or anything else. She has been left on her own with her two kids in fear of seeing this particular individual again.

This is the story of countless families and individuals. Gardaí are doing what they can to catch offenders, only to watch them being released on bail by the courts. It is a disgrace that those arrested for violent crimes in Dublin are so frequently released on bail. The Minister of State speaks of making Dublin safe but after decades of Fine Gael at the helm, families have never felt more unsafe in this city.

Over a year ago, an appalling situation developed on Sandwith Street. A tented village took over the street, surrounding Boyne Street and St. Andrew's Court, from there to Mount Street and now onto the Grand Canal and Ringsend. The pass-the-parcel approach of the Government on immigration cannot continue. The issue is being passed from one neglected community to the next because of the Taoiseach and Government's ad hocapproach to immigration. Those communities and local businesses are left picking up the pieces from the Government's failed policies. Will the Minister of State outline which stakeholders will be part of the task force? Will it include representatives from inner-city communities?

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