Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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In the interest of saving time and because the facts are well known, I do not think I need to lay out the significant issue facing the State regarding these ongoing arson attacks. I do not believe that we are taking them seriously enough and I do not believe the Garda is taking them seriously enough. We need to look not only at the individual cases but at the systemic problem they point to. Despite recent arrests, I suggest we are still not taking them seriously. The Commissioner has spoken about these being one-off, lone wolf or copycat attacks. I think his exact words were that there was no guiding hand but there is a clear systemic pattern here whereby a small group of people is pointing out new centres that are being prepared for use and within days, those are set on fire.

There is a clear systemic pattern here and we are not responding to that. Inaction has consequences. Last February, a group of protesters stood outside a Garda station openly calling for arson to significant cheers and applause from the crowds. That was last February and since then, there have been fires and arson in Buncrana, Sandwith Street, Buncrana again, Ballincollig, Ballybrack, Sherrard Street, Fermoy, the Holiday Inn off O’Connell Street, Finglas, Rosslare, Rosscahill, County Galway, Ringsend, Sandyford, Lanesborough, Crooksling and Leixlip and there are more which happened before that. There is a systemic issue here that the Garda is just not facing up to. In its own statements, An Garda Síochána has dismissed any kind of organisation behind this, where there is a clear pattern. The pattern and the organisation behind these attacks ultimately are a threat to our democracy. It is the same group of people who are assaulting TDs out here. It is the same group that is currently targeting IPAS applicants sleeping rough on the streets of Dublin. There is a threat and there is danger here, not just in individual cases, but in a systemic way. It represents a complete breakdown in law and order. It is both deeply frustrating and deeply dangerous that An Garda Síochána does not see the pattern here and does not acknowledge that this is a wider issue that needs a significantly stronger response. When Commissioner Harris was before the justice committee I raised this with him and he said very concerning things. Among other things, he stated the Garda was not up on their networks.

However, the reality is that this is all being done in public on Facebook and Telegram. These people are proud of what they have done and are bragging about it. If we cannot find the evidence or patterns in public statements of those who are bragging, the state of the Garda is very concerning.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which is on all our minds at the moment. I will start with a positive: all communities across the country have been extremely welcoming and supportive of the large number of people who have come to this country seeking protection and shelter. That will continue.

While people have a right to protest, which we should always protect, people do not have a right to do so in a way that causes harm or causes people to fear for their safety or in a way that threatens public safety and order. The intimidation of migrants and the blocking of access to accommodation centres, in particular, are absolutely unacceptable and warrant an appropriate response from the Garda. I do believe the Garda has responded appropriately. It is important to point out that many of the people at protests are not the ones who escalate the violence or escalate activity to the point where arson is committed. There is a line in this regard that gardaí have to examine. They must find out who is saying what, whether they cross a threshold, whether the threshold is a criminal one, where hurtful and harmful is being used as opposed to the carrying out of certain acts. All this work has to be done. I assure the Deputy that the Garda does monitor this type of behaviour. It monitors the protests and what has been said online. However, to have prosecutions, you need a huge amount of evidence. Last year alone, more than 800 protests were monitored by an Garda. In the Dublin metropolitan region alone, there were 430. At those, there were 43 arrests, 32 of which were during the protests. However, there were 11 arrests afterwards. While it might not seem like something is happening at the time or on the day, work is done afterwards.

There are also gardaí proactively looking online. Only last night, I spoke to someone in my constituency with a property that was targeted by individuals who stated online that people would be coming to it seeking international protection. Gardaí came to him and said they saw the information online and that he needed to ensure his property was secure. They said they could support him in doing that. However, we have to be realistic as well. It is not possible for the Garda to manage and stand outside every single vacant property in the country. I believe the Deputy agrees with that. We have to ensure that where situations arise, gardaí have the resources available to conduct the investigations. The Deputy mentioned that ten arrests have already been made specific to the arsons that have taken place, not just those of the past few weeks but also those of the past few months. Other arrests have taken place related to vandalism at these properties. It is so important that people realise vandalism is not protesting. Somebody who believes that by breaking a window at a direct provision centre, they are merely making a point should realise that doing so is a criminal act. There are very serious penalties when it comes to arson. The maximum is up to life in prison When it comes to vandalism, it is up to ten years in prison or a significant fine. People need to be very clear.

It is very important that we do not in any way suggest gardaí or anyone else in this House is responsible for what is happening or that those seeking protection are responsible. The only people who are responsible for the arson attacks, vandalism, the violence we are seeing and the harmful language online are those planning and carrying out these acts and lighting the matches. There can never be a justification for such acts, regardless of circumstance or alleged motivation.

I stress what I have said several times: anybody who has information needs to come forward. You are complicit if you are not providing information to An Garda Síochána. I appreciate it can be frustrating for people who want to see arrests take place yesterday. However, if you want a conviction you need to make sure the criminal threshold is reached, there is CCTV, there are witnesses, there are people willing to come forward and, when you go to the DPP, there is enough evidence for a prosecution. The Garda is absolutely committed to ensuring those responsible for these vile acts are held accountable. I do not like the situation any more than the Deputy but the Commissioner, whom I speak to regularly, has been assured that he will have any additional resources he needs.

Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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Unfortunately, based on the Commissioner's public statements, his statements at the committee and his idea that there is no systemic planning and that it is simply a matter of one-off events, I do not share that confidence. Furthermore, it is not just a question of the person who lights the match. Our criminal law provides that anyone who aids, abets, counsels or procures is an accomplice and is as guilty as the principal offender. Equally, there is the crime of incitement. We have seen plenty of incitement that has gone utterly unpunished. I am talking about incitement of criminality, let alone incitement of hatred and the hate speech aspect.

I underline that we need to address the systemic issues related to people who are deliberately planning, plotting and organising and who present a serious and genuine threat to the institutions of our democracy. Beyond this, there are people who are openly planning, recruiting and bragging about vigilante groups being set up around the country. There are people posting their community patrols on Facebook and posting recruitment posters for them. They are trying to pull people in. Vigilante groups are absolutely a threat to our democracy. Journalists are being singled out, called out by name, threatened, harassed and intimidated. Despite how we may feel about journalists and some of the things they say about Members, they are an essential part of our democratic institutions. They, too, are under attack from the same sources. There is a very serious, shadowy threat against our democracy and people's lives are at risk. I do not believe, based on the Commissioner's public statements, that he is taking the matter seriously.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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While I cannot speak for the Commissioner, I know that he was referring in his statements to the fact that we cannot link every attack to the same group of people or individuals. There was an incident recently when a vacant building that had nothing to do with any type of accommodation for anyone was set alight. We are talking about acts of criminality. The individuals are criminals, not masterminds. As far as I am concerned, these are criminals who are going around setting buildings alight and putting people at risk. We are really lucky that nobody has been seriously injured or worse. The Deputy should be reassured that the Garda is taking this as seriously as necessary.

When it comes to dealing with the online space, we have an Online Safety Commissioner now. The Deputy's colleague in the Green Party has been responsible for getting Coimisiún na Meán up and running. It is actively engaging with the online providers and gardaí. It is about safeguards where something does not necessarily cross the threshold. One of the issues brought to my attention is that there is a very high threshold in the incitement legislation, particularly when trying to prosecute. The DPP is very clear on what it needs and the evidence it requires, and that is why we have the hate crime legislation, which I want to enact. We need to ensure our laws are as strong as possible so the Garda has the resources it needs. However, evidence is needed, and that is why Coimisiún na Meán will be so important. It is a matter of service providers taking down harmful content that has not crossed the threshold. Where they cross it, they must be fined and penalised. There is a body of work involving Coimisiún na Meán, the online providers and An Garda Síochána.

Separately, it is so important that where people have information on any of these incidents, they provide it to the Garda. On the Deputy's point, it is not just a matter of the person who lights the match but also of the person who plans the incident and aids and abets. Those who have information and do not come forward are as guilty as the person who lights the match.