Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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135. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of knives seized by Gardaí in 2024 and to date in 2025 across the Dublin region, in tabular form. [24636/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I strongly condemn the use of knives to threaten, intimidate or harm others. I am committed to ensuring that communities are safe and tackling knife crime is an important element of that.

There are no quick-fix solutions to tackling knife crime. Long term, evidence-based strategies are needed that address knife crime as part of a wider strategic response to anti-social behaviour, street violence, youth offending and domestic violence.

There is, however, a comprehensive and robust legal framework in place in Ireland with respect to knife crime. Last year, legislation was introduced which increased the maximum penalty for the offences of possession of a knife with intent to cause injury, trespassing with a knife, and producing a knife to unlawfully intimidate another person, from five to seven years imprisonment.

In addition, the Government doubled the maximum penalty for assault causing harm to ten years in 2023. The offence of assault causing serious harm already has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

The below table, provided by the Garda authorities, outlines the number of knives that have been seized in the year 2024 per DMR region.

The Garda authorities have advised that a comprehensive update of their report on Knife Crime is nearing completion and is scheduled for publication during Q2 2025.

The previously published report is available at the following link:

www.garda.ie/en/about-us/publications/general-reports/analysis-of-knife-related-crime-data-february-2021.pdf

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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136. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of arrests made in relation to knife seizures across the Dublin region in 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form. [24637/25]

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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137. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of incidents that have been recorded in which a knife has been used as a weapon across the Dublin region in 2024 and to date in 2025. [24638/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 136 and 137 together.

I strongly condemn the use of knives to threaten, intimidate or harm others. I am committed to ensuring that communities are safe and tackling knife crime is an important element of that.

There are no quick-fix solutions to tackling knife crime. Long term, evidence-based strategies are needed that address knife crime as part of a wider strategic response to anti-social behaviour, street violence, youth offending and domestic violence.

There is, however, a comprehensive and robust legal framework in place in Ireland with respect to knife crime. Last year, legislation was introduced which increased the maximum penalty for the offences of possession of a knife with intent to cause injury, trespassing with a knife, and producing a knife to unlawfully intimidate another person, from 5 to 7 years imprisonment.

In addition, the Government doubled the maximum penalty for assault causing harm to 10 years in 2023. The offence of assault causing serious harm already has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

I have been advised by the Garda authorities that there is no field on PULSE from which it is possible to identify the number of arrests for carrying a knife and/or incidents of possession of a knife, specifically and as distinct from all offensive weapons (which includes any type of weapon which is not a firearm).

Similarly, there is no single classification of 'knife crime' on PULSE or within official crime statistics published by the Central Statistics Office. This due to the fact that knives (and other offensive weapons as mentioned above) may be used in the commission of a wide range of offenses, ranging from threats/intimidation to serious assaults and murder. Knives may also be used in domestic or sexual violence, again to threaten or intimidate.

An Garda Síochána is working to compile an update of their previous publication on knife related crime which will provide further insight on the variety of contexts in which a knife may be a feature of an incident, including being used to threaten or to commit actual violence. I am informed by the Garda authorities that a comprehensive update of An Garda Síochána's report on Knife Crime is nearing completion and scheduled for publication during Q2 2025.

The previously published report from February 2021 is available at the following link:

www.garda.ie/en/about-us/publications/general-reports/analysis-of-knife-related-crime-data-february-2021.pdf.

I am advised by the Garda authorities that the below table provides a breakdown of the annual number of knives seized by Gardaí across the Dublin Region and DMR Divisions over the past ten years.

Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour)
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138. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of seizures of knives in each county in each of the years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and to-date in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24715/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I strongly condemn the use of knives to threaten, intimidate or harm others. I am committed to ensuring that communities are safe and tackling knife crime is an important element of that.

There are no quick-fix solutions to tackling knife crime. Long term, evidence-based strategies are needed that address knife crime as part of a wider strategic response to anti-social behaviour, street violence, youth offending and domestic violence.

There is, however, a comprehensive and robust legal framework in place in Ireland with respect to knife crime. Last year, legislation was introduced which increased the maximum penalty for the offences of possession of a knife with intent to cause injury, trespassing with a knife, and producing a knife to unlawfully intimidate another person, from five to seven years imprisonment.

In addition, the Government doubled the maximum penalty for assault causing harm to ten years in 2023. The offence of assault causing serious harm already has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

The below table, provided by the Garda authorities, outlines the number of knives that have been seized in the years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 according to each Garda region/ division:

The Garda authorities have advised that a comprehensive update of their report on knife crime is nearing completion and is scheduled for publication during Q2 2025.

The previously published report is available at the following link:

www.garda.ie/en/about-us/publications/general-reports/analysis-of-knife-related-crime-data-february-2021.pdf