Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In the past few days my office has been inundated with reports of very aggressive burglaries and street muggings. Very worrying young people, I would call them thugs, in packs and gangs are targeting women with bags on the street. It is not just confined to the evening but there are instances of muggings during the day. We hear repeatedly of increased numbers of gardaí, but I do not see them on the beat. We should ensure there is a scheme in place so that community gardaí are more visible and more funding goes into direct community policing. The people who are living their lives and going to bed at night, wake up to find that their back door has been smashed in but do not find that the Garda is protecting them. We need to give more resources to the Garda Síochána because at present the resources seem to be spent on dealing with the gangs in the city. We see road blocks but we do not see community gardaí out on the beat looking after ordinary citizens. I would like to hear the comments of the Minister for Justice and Equality on the increase of neighbourhood crimes in our city.

My second point relates to mortgages. Many people do not know the benefit of switching mortgages and the savings one can make if one switches. I encourage people to examine their mortgage and see if they can save by switching. In the majority of cases when one is not locked into a mortgage one can save. Consumers need to be made a lot more aware of the savings available in the market.

I welcome the imminent introduction of legislation by the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, that will enable the safe termination of pregnancies up to 12 weeks.