Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

I propose to share time with Senators Buttimer and McFadden.

There has been a horrendous catalogue of crime in recent weeks. There has been virtual anarchy on the streets of the capital, which is tragic and serious. A major response is needed.

The use of CAB is insufficient. The Government is not exploiting that asset to capture the assets of criminals. It is an initiative that came from Fine Gael, a fact of which I am proud, and I commend to the Minister its greater use. There is no better way to hurt a criminal than by hurting him in his pocket.

A pernicious and prevalent form of crime is low-level crime, which creates fear in our citizens as they walk the streets of our towns. It creates an awful atmosphere, particularly at night, and requires an organised response. The civilianisation of the Garda Síochána is vital and urgent. Gardaí should be designated to particular streets or wards on a permanent basis. They would become known in the area and would get to know the area.

Rostering of gardaí should coincide with peak times and times of high levels of incidents. The same number of gardaí should not be on duty on a Monday daytime shift as during a weekend shift. Greater incentives must be made available to gardaí to make it attractive for them to live in the communities they serve. Negotiations should be urgently entered into with the Garda representative bodies to deal with this matter.

I was heartened when the Minister informed the House that CCTV will be introduced to county capital towns. However, it must be introduced in every town and village. The savings made with this method of crime prevention are enormous. In dealing with the dramatic high-profile anarchy on the streets of Dublin and other cities, we must not lose sight of low-level crime. This is the type of crime that harasses the old when they collect their pensions, decent youngsters when they socialise at weekends and innocent people going about their normal lives. This low-level crime creates fear and is pernicious and pervasive. It must be dealt with by a Garda presence on the streets, civilianisation, CCTV cameras and community policing.

No matter how wealthy the country, it is not a good society when people live in fear. This is the most urgent issue facing our society that needs an immediate and urgent response.