Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I again raise the issue of safety in Dublin, particularly in Dublin's inner city. As the Taoiseach will know, last Saturday, there was a very vicious attack in Thomas Street in the south inner city on tourists visiting the capital. It was shocking. It happened at 7.30 p.m, and it is not an isolated incident - far from it. I have raised this issue with the Taoiseach many times before.

In the north-west inner city, in Marmion Court, the community is very shaken today. Last night, a person carrying a knife and wearing a balaclava got access to the complex through a broken gate, which the locals have been looking to get fixed for a long time. Children were put in the way of danger. This person was making a getaway after using the weapon to rob a house in another part of the district.

The community in the north inner city simply does not feel safe. It is the same in the south. The Government has cut the number of community gardaí by 40% over ten years. That is a significant part of people feeling unsafe. When is the Taoiseach going to come into the real world with the rest of us, get a grip on this and address the issue of Garda resources across the State, but for the purposes of this question, in Dublin's inner city?

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