Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will speak to amendment No. 62 in a moment but first I will lend my voice to Senator Boyhan's amendment. I meditated for approximately an hour before I came here today because I was getting ready for the furore and the strength with which we would see people advocating for local representatives and I hope that is still to come. When I think of local representatives in those spaces, for me it is beyond them just being elected representatives at that local level. When we look at communities, often people who run for local politics are the people who actually live in the community. They most identify with the community; they live and work there. People may have started out working in local organisations or sports clubs. People volunteer for the local soccer clubs or boxing clubs and they are the people we see getting involved with local politics. They are the people we see parties target in terms of them being identified as role models within their communities and would it not be great if they got involved in local politics. It is for that reason. My local shopkeeper is a councillor. For me, it is beyond the fact they are just local councillors it is that "who" becomes a local councillor. How close are we to the ground when we include local councillors? Forget for a moment they are elected representatives and ask what they are the other half of the week, whether that be the sports coach, the shopkeeper, or all of those things. They are the ones who have a much more rounded view of what is happening in communities in terms of community safety. I join in asking the Minister to seriously consider the important and vital role played by local representatives beyond the fact they are just local representatives as they actually are local community members.

As for the amendments I have tabled, amendment No. 62 is a simple amendment that seeks to ensure the Minister shall consult with the Policing Authority and other persons representing community interests when preparing the national strategy for improving community safety. As drafted, the section provides that the Minister shall consult with the authority and the relevant stakeholders prior to the preparation of the strategy. The amendment seeks to replace the term "prior to" with "in" to reflect the need for continued and meaningful engagement between the Minister, the authority, and the relevant stakeholders in the process of developing or revising the national strategy. While I am sure the section, as drafted, aims to ensure this consultation takes place, accepting the subtle rewording would make it explicitly clear in semantic terms that this consultation is a mutual and meaningful process. The national strategy will be an important guiding document in respect of the improvement of local community safety and a greater number of advices and perspectives should be regularly consulted in its development. I do not anticipate the Minister will accept the amendment but I stress the fact that this consultation ought to be more than a tick-box exercise and much more of a partnership.