Liam Fitzgerald (Fianna Fail)

I rarely agree with Senator Ulick Burke on educational matters but I concur that bullying is an ongoing issue. However, I was heartened when the Minister recently drew up or expanded a number of initiatives and frontloaded funding to address the issue.

The issue is of serious concern for parents and, in particular, for children whose learning environment is seriously disrupted. Many attempts have been made over the years by teachers and management boards to address this difficult and vexed question, with varying degrees of success.

I heartily support Senator Ó Murchú on the issue of anti-social behaviour in our communities. Everywhere I go in my constituency, I hear comments on anti-social behaviour, whether that involves loitering, drinking, public brawling or other activities which I will not refer to here. Despite the best efforts of the Garda and its ongoing responsiveness to calls from communities and public representatives, the problem is not being solved.

Gardaí find it particularly difficult to address the problem of anti-social behaviour arising on private property but causing serious public disruption. I recently made representations to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform on this issue. One of the causes of this problem is that gardaí are somewhat removed from their respective communities but the special reserve force offers a significant opportunity to address that issue. We should hold a debate to tease out the successes of existing programmes and assess the potential of the Minister's proposals to address any failures.