Emer Currie (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the news yesterday about the introduction of tougher sentencing for knife crime. I have raised this issue frequently, both in the Seanad and directly with the Minister for Justice. What is helpful is the differentiation between possession and intent and the added length to sentences relating to the importation and sale of knives. I hope we can continue to build on that because we need to look at the behavioural reasons for knife crime. Seizures have been around 2,200 over the past five years. Knives are used in many different crimes and are increasingly used by young people and on our streets, so we need to continue the work in this regard.

There were reports this morning about activity in the constituency of Dublin West following the gangland-related incident there on Christmas Eve. I have been very much engaged with An Garda Síochána on that matter since Christmas and have every faith in it in terms of managing it. However, Dublin West should be prioritised in the context of the roll-out of community safety partnerships. This is a good opportunity for the Minister for Justice to come back to the House to update us on where the community safety partnerships stand and a range of other community issues.