Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for attending this debate. I will raise a couple of matters. I welcome the Government's commitment to the Dublin city task force and the implementation of its report. It is very important for the city centre and restoring confidence in the city.

I will call out two items in the report. The first is "Big Move 5 - Deliver more targeted and better located services for vulnerable populations in [the] city ...". That is not easy to do. For example, there is a huge concentration of emergency accommodation on Gardiner Street. If we are to deal with the issue of safety, we will have to start redistributing those facilities. It will not be popular in other jurisdictions and locations throughout the country, but it is very important that everybody takes their fair share of those services. The second item in the report is Big Move 4, which recommends an additional 1,000 gardaí for the city, as my colleague mentioned. They will be very important for the city centre. I look forward to hearing about early progress and a timeline for recruitment, numbers and when boots will be put on the ground.

On a related point, from my experience in politics, community gardaí are often undervalued. Sometimes, that section seems to be seen as something of a backwater in the context of the various units of An Garda Síochána, but community gardaí do a huge service for their communities. They establish great rapport over many years in local communities and have very good relations with them. They are vital to the effective functioning of An Garda Síochána in our communities. Will the Government consider a community garda allowance, or some sort of allowance, that will allow An Garda Síochána to rebalance that perception? It would give an indication that the service is valued and rewarded. That is a very important element.

I mentioned previously the proposed Dublin metropolitan region headquarters at Northern Cross. I take the opportunity to raise that matter again. It is a new divisional headquarters for An Garda Síochána that will go into Northern Cross. Nothing is better in policing than boots on the ground. That headquarters will make a huge difference to safety and the perception of communities in Clongriffin, Belmayne and other areas. I encourage and ask the Government to continue to prioritise the delivery of that station.

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