Aisling Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for the proactive work he has done in his brief, which I have no doubt will continue as we deliver on our programme for Government commitments.

There is little doubt this Government and our Fianna Fáil party are putting law and order at the centre of our work for the next five years.

The nature of the crime faced by our citizens is constantly changing. Success in reducing a type of crime in one area sees different forms of crime spring up in other areas. Making sure the right number of equipped and motivated gardaí are deployed in the right areas is very important. The public needs to see gardaí in our communities. We know once they are deployed they generally deliver so much more to their communities than just policing.

The benefits of community policing go far beyond dealing with crime alone. It makes people feel safe. It motivates gardaí. It has a significant preventative effect on crime and, if done correctly, can resolve conflicts within communities much more quickly.

I know the programme for Government sets out ambitious targets for Garda recruitment and this is to be welcomed and should be coupled with a national strategy to enhance the Garda's ability and competence in respect of community policing . In towns throughout Ireland they are not just working in their communities but for them in terms of doing fundraisers, supporting local community groups and engaging with local people. Community police are the ambassadors for the Garda. Trim's community garda, Edel, is a positive, welcome and visible presence all around our town.

From speaking to gardaí during the past few months it is clear the amount of time spent on administration has increased exponentially over the past few years. This is affecting morale and you can be sure it impacts the numbers applying for roles within the Garda. The people need to see the force. We need to put names to the faces of our gardaí and get them out from behind their desks and onto the streets. Garda strategy needs to focus on reducing the reducing the administrative burden on gardaí so they can get out into our communities. We need them, our community gardaí, in our schools talking to our young people, meeting them and deterring them from even the pettiest of crimes.

Recent CSO studies show a 7% increase in theft, with the majority of these incidents being shoplifting. This is a plague on small businesses and is a worrying trend because it often precedes an increase in more serious crime. Indeed, the recent CSO statistics show a 10% increase in burglaries in 2024. In my own constituency of Meath West, we have seen a spate of recent burglaries of commercial businesses in our small rural villages.

Not all the crime in Ireland is happening just in the city centre. A family-run café in Kildalkey was targeted twice in recent weeks. A local butcher and chipper in Ballivor were raided on the same night last week also. These sorts of thefts are really painful in the short term, but the resultant increase in insurance costs can be fatal in the medium term. We cannot let rural entrepreneurs be preyed upon by opportunistic criminals. We want businesses to thrive in our villages. We need them to provide services to people, as well as to pay their rates and taxes.

We are told the retail and restaurant sector is under significant pressure. Too many main streets in towns and villages have boarded-up windows. Let us not replace them with broken windows by letting crime take root. A review of Garda numbers by county shows the Meath and Westmeath region has among the lowest levels of gardaí in the country. I suggest the Minister should focus existing resources in the Meath area on preventing further burglaries and crime taking off for the sake of local businesses and the safety of citizens living in our small towns and villages. I ask the Minister that new gardaí who come on stream are not just automatically sent to the high-crime areas. Places like Meath West, with an increased Garda presence now, will come back from the brink of high crime rates. It is a preventative measure, if you will. This means feet on the street, more community gardaí, and rural stations to be manned again. I welcome the commitment by the Government to recruit more gardaí through the recently launched recruitment campaign entitled, "It's a Job Worth Doing".

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