Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have an amazing sense of déjà vu. Last week, I raised the issue of gangland crime and I must do so again today. To date in 2019, there have been ten gangland-related murders in the city, which is nearly one per month. At the weekend, we heard of the horrific murder of a 22-year-old man in Coolock. Another murder took place in Lucan the previous week. People are living in fear in our cities, not just because of gangland crime but also because of petty crimes such as burglaries. People are living in fear in rural Ireland because of the major increase in crime rates. Isolated farmers are living alone and burglaries at their properties seem to be the norm. This is not right and it is not the type of society in which I want to live. There seems to be no respect whatever for the rule of law and there seems to be no disincentive to prevent people breaking the law. Scores are settled using guns rather than in more rational ways. We must formulate a solution and look at what we did in the past when we set up the Criminal Assets Bureau and strict legislation relating to sentencing and gun laws, particularly possession and crimes committed with guns. We must get much tougher. The Minister for Justice and Equality is not doing enough. There have been ten gangland-related murders in the past year, which is not a great record. He should be held accountable for this and come to the Seanad to engage in a proper debate on gangland-related crime and illegal drugs. It could be a wider debate on the drugs issue, including legalisation-----