Déirdre de Búrca (Green Party)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Sargent, to the House. I welcome also this timely debate on gun crime. There is much public anxiety and a genuine sense of insecurity about the current level of gun crime. The public is looking for a strong and adequate response. There is no scope for the legal possession of handguns in this country. Other Members have said that almost 1,300 guns, included 27 handguns, were reported stolen over the past six years. Of these, only 373 were recovered. Operation Anvil against organised crime has seized 1,192 firearms since May 2005. Many of these weapons fall into the hands of drug criminals who subsequently use them to terrorise, maim and kill in pursuit of their vile trade. We know of innocent victims who have been highlighted in the media coverage of these terrible gun crimes received. Some names include Aidan O'Kane, who was murdered recently in East Wall, and Donna Cleary. The list goes on of innocent civilians murdered accidentally or in error. They die at the hands of those participating in gun crimes. I back the move by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Dermot Ahern, to bring in an outright ban on handguns. I disagree with those who argue that legally held guns are not a threat. From the early 1970s until 2004, handguns were effectively banned as part of the effort to curb the threat of paramilitaries. Owing to a series of court rulings, this was relaxed and the number of legally held handguns has increased significantly in recent years. I welcome the de facto ban on issuing new handgun licences which the Minister has introduced. He is also to be congratulated on his plan to introduce legislation early next year to ban all handguns.

There are 1,800 legally held handguns in the Republic. If the current rates of growth in gun licensing are sustained, we could have ownership rates comparable with some US states. This would be unacceptable in a country that has kept a civilian unarmed police force through many crises. What we need is better targeting, detection and prevention of crime. Unfortunately, the majority of gun crimes in this country are drug related. We have dangerous gangs operating in the country, involved in organised crime, human trafficking and drug trafficking. It is incumbent on the Government to provide better resources to our police force for the better targeting, detection and prevention of these crimes.

We need to see prison sentences strengthened. I call for at least a ten-year sentence for the illegal possession of firearms. Fewer than one in five gun crimes result in a conviction. Unfortunately, the figures are disappointingly low. There was a 17% conviction rate for gun crime in 2003, 18% in 2004, and it fell to 15% in 2005. I call for the introduction of an absolute ban on the legal possession of handguns. There is a danger that we are going down the road of an emerging gun culture similar to those we see in some states of the US. This would not be in the interests of Ireland or our civilian unarmed police force. For that reason, we need to move quickly. I support the move by the Minister to introduce an outright ban on handguns and to control the licensing of handguns from this point on.