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

Listening to that, I cannot help feeling the Departments of Justice and of the Taoiseach are deluded as to what is happening for families living in the inner city. In recent years, the communities of Pearse Street and City Quay have been terrorised by gangs who travel from all over Dublin to have recreational gang fights on the bridge at City Quay.

The local communities, gardaí and Dublin County Council are doing their best and the residents groups in City Quay work hard to bring law and order back to the streets but communities and front-line gardaí are fighting an uphill battle. They are utterly under-resourced and failed by the Minister for Justice.

In recent months, we have seen a spike in crime in the City Quay area, particularly break-ins. The community feels abandoned. The elderly and those living alone, in particular, are terrified. What are residents supposed to do if someone breaks into their home and the Garda does not have the resources to respond? Clearly, the Garda does not have the resources to respond to the huge levels of violent crime in the inner city.

I am concerned that if the Government does not get its act together and put more gardaí on the beat, it will not be too long before we see residents taking the law into their own hands. That is hugely worrying. The Government must ensure it does not come to that, must give communities the gardaí they need to feel safe and must ensure the city is safe for residents whose front garden is the city centre. We have to have more protection. The Minister for Justice seems deluded as to what is happening in the area.

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