James Bannon (Fine Gael)

I ask the Leader to request the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to come to the House for a debate on crime and the proposal to sell off 200 Garda stations throughout the country and to close rural Garda stations between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. That policy is ludicrous and is an invitation to criminals to operate at night. We have a dreadful situation in the midlands where Dublin gangs hit rural areas on a nightly basis and terrorise elderly people in isolated rural areas. This must stop. The presence of the Garda in rural areas is vital for the safety of our people.