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

Aontaím leis an Taoiseach gur olc an scéal é gan dabht. Cén plean atá ag an Rialtas? Tá sé soiléir nach bhfuil an plean ceart aige. Dithering in the face of all this is not a sufficient response from the Government. I could write a lengthy thesis on the underlying causes of crime - the poverty, the lack of investment and the lack of opportunity. We could all do that but we are facing a situation now where in Dublin in particular, but also elsewhere, people simply do not feel safe. The Taoiseach says there is zero tolerance of knife crime. Tell that to people on the street. The fact is knife crime and the carrying of knives is now endemic. What is the Taoiseach and the Government going to do about this? We cannot afford a laissez-faire approach in respect of the granting of bail. I know it is at the discretion of the judge but if the guidelines are clearly failing, if they are inadequate, and where you have serial offenders out on bail offending again, surely to God Government needs to take a stand on that.

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