Tom Brabazon (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I commend Deputy Gogarty on tabling the motion, which is very timely. It reflects a lot of the commitments in the programme for Government, which the Minister is very committed to implementing. Much of the behaviour we see around north Dublin is not antisocial behaviour. We should call it what it is - crime. Changing the term to antisocial behaviour seems to downgrade it and dilutes effective responses to it so we need to call it what it is. It is crime. It damages public spaces, discourages positive community use and can drive people indoors away from our public open spaces and make these spaces even more dangerous as a result of lack of footfall. It deeply affects vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children and people with disabilities.

I would like to see meaningful consequences, particularly for those under 18, for those involved in this type of offending. I take the point that more investment and diversion - all of the issues mentioned by Deputy Heneghan mentioned - are needed. This is without a shadow of a doubt. However, we cannot put it all down to that. Far more responsibility falls on the individuals who live under the roof of adults who do not seem to know what is happening to their own children, which is unacceptable. If offenders face no accountability or consequences, they become emboldened and continue such harmful behaviour. I can tell the House about parts of my constituency where a feral gang goes in and out of an apartment complex and have literally taken over the common areas. They defecate, urinate, sell drugs, charge up their e-bikes and e-scooters, go out on the streets and cause the problems described by Deputy Heneghan all over Dublin Bay North. This behaviour is unacceptable. I listened to Paul Reid at a meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Drugs Use. He put it very eruditely that the drugs problem seems to affect many of our more vulnerable members of society. Unfortunately, the problem is found more in areas with social housing than in other areas. Drugs affect all of society but it is very much concentrated in areas with social housing. There is a connection between our ineffective antisocial behaviour policies that are not implemented properly and our local authorities and approved housing bodies. Much more work needs to be done. In light of our housing crisis, if we had effective antisocial behaviour policies, it would remove the fear regarding social housing developments going ahead in new areas. This is something that needs to be examined and we need to move on it without further delay.

Early intervention reduces the risk of minor antisocial behaviour escalating into criminal activity. I take the point about the numbers of community gardaí falling. The Minister is working on increasing the numbers of gardaí and there will be a consequential increase in that. I also welcome the efforts by him and the Minister for Transport regarding transport police. That is really timely because an antisocial and criminal element has taken to public transport to sell drugs and engage in nefarious activities.

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