Tom McEllistrim (Kerry North, Fianna Fail)
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As this is my first opportunity to do so, I congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney, on his appointment. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important issue and call on the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to establish a special squad in the Garda to deal with anti-social behaviour and public disorder. I urge the Minister to introduce this squad on a pilot basis in Tralee.

Local newspapers across the country provide almost weekly reports of court proceedings involving public order offences and anti-social behaviour, which principally occur at weekends, although unfortunately they also take place on week days. Our communities and town and county councils regularly discuss the problems caused by drunken revellers late at night. Shopkeepers often spend Mondays cleaning up broken windows and other damage. It is unfortunate that many people seem to be unable to have a night out without causing annoyance, distress or harm to others. Their social night out develops, usually with the aid of alcohol and possibly other substances, into an anti-social experience for everyone around them. Fuelled by substances they would be better off without, they can make life a misery for members of the public, local businesses, the Garda Síochána and personnel in emergency departments.

Intoxication in a public place, disorderly conduct, threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour, assault, violent disorder, affray and attacks on emergency service personnel are examples of some of the many types of disorderly behaviour and public order offences which adversely affect the quality of life in our towns and cities. We all want our town centres to be alive and vibrant places where people want to live. Urban renewal schemes were devised with this objective in mind. However, there is no incentive to live in a town centre if one is kept awake at night by rowdy drunks and greeted on Monday mornings by shards of broken glass, an abundance of litter, graffiti and other damage to property. What about members of the public or tourists who go out for a night and find themselves threatened, abused, insulted or intimidated for no good reason? Sadly, this type of anti-social behaviour is probably an unfortunate side effect of the booming economy we have had over the past decade or more. In dealing with such behaviour, it is necessary to specifically target locations where civil disorder is rife, including areas outside pubs, clubs, discos, fast food outlets and at taxi ranks.

The record shows that assaults have increased substantially in Tralee. Headline incidents in County Kerry for the first quarter of 2008 rose to 493 from 462 in the first quarter of 2007, while in Tralee and Listowel they increased from 244 to 256 and 76 to 81, respectively, over the same period. Public order offences in County Kerry rose from 762 to 842 and while public order offences in Tralee declined, the number of more serious incidents increased from 95 to 110. Tralee has six night clubs, 24 off-licences, 126 pubs, 44 restaurants, 18 hotels and 13 fast food outlets. A zero tolerance approach by the Garda, which involved a complete clampdown on unruly behaviour, resulted in more than 100 arrests for public order offences in Kerry's three main towns in one weekend in early May. Arrests for fighting, drink driving, possession of drugs and other offences reached the three figure mark and there were 32 arrests in Tralee alone. Garda reinforcements, including members of the dog unit, were drafted in to help to keep the peace on the streets where people were partying until the early hours. Recently, Tralee Town Council debated whether to close a laneway in the town where there is a problem with anti-social behaviour.

The identifying and targeting of trouble hot spots in consultation with stakeholders can ensure more effective deployment of Garda resources and CCTV can be utilised to enhance public safety. It is, however, time to consider the creation of a special squad within the Garda to deal with this type of behaviour. The starting point should be the establishment of a local task force. Such a squad could involve the Garda, particularly community gardaí and Garda Reserve, and liaise with joint policing committees, the community and local business people, such as the proprietors of nightclubs and taxi ranks. The squad must be given the support, resources and skills it needs to tackle anti-social behaviour. Its members should be specially trained in dealing with public order problems, dress as a public order unit with protective gear if necessary and be capable of operating as a unit. Visibility, the use of a paddy wagon and a robust but fair approach to public disorder would act as a deterrent and would be appreciated by members of the public. This investment would pay dividends, particularly social dividends, in the long term. I urge the Minister to establish such a squad on a pilot basis in Tralee, County Kerry, and Abbeyfeale, County Limerick.

The Garda Síochána already has a number of special squads, including the traffic corps which deals with drink driving and speeding, the drugs squad which deals with the drugs problem and the special crime squad which deals with serious crime. I commend the Garda on the great work these special units do. Why should we not establish a squad to tackle the many problems associated with the scourge of anti-social behaviour and public disorder in a timely fashion and perhaps, in time, reduce the incidence of more serious crime?

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for his good wishes and for raising this important matter. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform regrets that he cannot be present as he is dealing with other business. However, I assure the Deputy that the Minister shares his concern, and the concern of all right-thinking citizens, regarding anti-social behaviour and public disorder.

Under the Garda Síochána Act 2005, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform has the power to set policing priorities for An Garda Síochána. One of the priorities set for 2008 is to combat, in co-operation with other agencies and the community in general, problems relating to public disorder, with special emphasis on alcohol-related behaviour — including under age drinking — and socially disadvantaged communities, particularly through the utilisation of the legal mechanisms, such as behaviour warnings and closure orders, that are available.

Strong provisions are already in place to combat anti-social behaviour. The Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 modernised the law in this regard. Furthermore, the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003 contains provisions to deal with alcohol abuse and its effect on public order. In addition, the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 2003 provides the Garda with powers to deal with late night street violence and anti-social conduct attributable to excessive drinking.

It is unfortunate, however, that excessive use of alcohol continues to be the cause of far too much of the anti-social behaviour experienced in Tralee and other communities. To address this, the Minister has introduced the Intoxicating Liquor Bill, which is currently being considered by the House. The Bill contains a number of significant reforms of the licensing laws and public order legislation, with the aim of addressing the adverse consequences of alcohol abuse in society. The measures being proposed are a balanced response to problems caused by excessive alcohol consumption and binge drinking.

The strategy underpinning the draft legislation will allow for the increased visibility and availability of alcohol through off-licences, while tightening the conditions under which premises with on-licences qualify for special exemption orders permitting them to remain open beyond normal licensing hours. The Bill increases penalties for public order and licensing offences. Furthermore, it contains measures to curtail drinking in public places — particularly by those under 18 — including allowing gardaí to seize alcohol. These powers will add significantly to the effectiveness of the Garda response to drinking in public places.

The Minister is informed by the Garda authorities that An Garda Síochána proactively targets public disorder and anti-social behaviour in Tralee. Areas subject to such behaviour have been identified as hot spots by local Garda management and additional foot and mobile patrols are directed into such areas during times when these offences are most likely to occur. All such incidents detected by members on patrol or reported to An Garda Síochána are dealt with immediately and the suspected offenders are dealt with in accordance with the law.

CCTV systems play an important part in support of policing and the maintenance of public safety. They also act as a useful deterrent to street crime and public disorder. Garda town centre CCTV systems are planned and implemented on the basis of operational needs identified by An Garda Síochána. I understand that CCTV systems have been installed in Tralee and are monitored at the local Garda station. In addition to monitoring of images in real time, all images are recorded and can be reviewed at short notice when required.

The Garda Síochána Act 2005 provides for the establishment of a joint policing committee in each local authority administrative area. The purpose of these committees is to provide a forum where members of a local authority and senior Garda officers, with the participation of Oireachtas Members and community interests, can consult, discuss and make recommendations in respect of matters affecting the policing of an area. Some 29 committees are currently operating on a pilot basis in order that experience might be gained before such committees are rolled out to all local authority areas, including that in which Tralee is located. In general, the outcome to date of the work of the committees has been positive and they are meeting definite local needs. Guidelines are being drafted which will enable roll out of the committees to take place and the Minister intends to ensure that this occurs at an early date.

An unprecedented increase in the strength of the Garda Síochána is continuing in line with the commitment in the programme for Government to have 15,000 members of the force by 2010, with an intake of approximately 1,100 recruits per annum. The personnel strength of Tralee Garda district at the end of May was 11% higher than was the case in May 2007. Policing operations and the deployment of Garda resources are matters for the Garda Commissioner. It is, and must remain, the responsibility of Garda management to allocate personnel within the Garda organisation on a priority basis in accordance with overall policing requirements.