Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Today, a Canadian tourist who was attacked on O'Connell Street last week has died in hospital. Neno Dolmajian from Montreal was 41 years old. It is a very sad, tragic and heartbreaking occasion for his family and friends and our deepest sympathies go out to his family. It points to a very serious issue that the main street of our capital city is a dangerous and violent place on a regular basis for many people. It is not just the main street of our capital city but people do not feel safe in towns and villages across the country. It is not happening by accident. It is happening because we have the lowest number of gardaí per capita for the past six years, because our prisons are so full that the Minister for Justice has to choose prisoners for early release to make way for new prisoners and because an enormous number of unduly lenient prison sentences are being given at present. It is also because we still have Garda recruitment on the floor with gardaí still being attacked on a daily basis. We also have gardaí leaving because of retirement and they are resigning in larger numbers. I do not believe that this Government has got to the bottom of ensuring that we have a Garda force that is strong enough to be able to keep our towns, cities and the main street of our capital safe.

See this speech in context