Deputy Pat Rabbitte has been given permission to raise the matter of the urgent necessity to extend the community policing experiment and the juvenile liaison officer scheme having regard to the misery being caused to local residents by worsening crime in parts of the Dublin South-West constituency.
Adjournment Debate. - Dublin South-West Crime Level.
Thank you for allowing me to raise the issue of worsening crime in parts of my constituency and the urgent necessity for the gardaí to be given additional resources — specifically the extension of both the community policing and the juvenile liaison officer schemes to deal more effectively with the situation. I can tell the Minister for Justice tonight, for example, of the meeting in Killinarden school earlier this week when 500 people attended and expressed the view that vandalism and crime are out of control in the area. This plea from law abiding citizens can and will, as summer approaches, be repeated at other locations in the constituency.
At that meeting dozens of speakers voiced what has only been said in private up to now; women returning from late shift working walk in fear for their personal safety; single mother families barricaded in their homes; families under siege because they happen to live closest to the point of congregation for young gangs on the rampage; homes broken into and burgled and schools damaged and teaching aids stolen in broad daylight.
Above all there are two things that are causing law abiding citizens to despair; first, an environment of fear is being created by a very small number of criminal families who are known to the gardaí but, in the view of the residents, are not being effectively prosecuted by the gardaí; second, Dublin Corporation, as the housing authority in some of these areas, seem either unwilling or unable to deal with troublesome families whose offspring are terrorising the community. There is virtually no hands-on management by the corporation of what is the largest local authority housing area in Ireland. There is no accountability to the people since no public representative of any party is elected to Dublin City Council and consequently Dublin Corporation are seen to be neglectful and careless about housing allocation and management.
I am now satisfied that crime and alienation in parts of my constituency are as bad, if not worse, than the sad circumstances a few years ago that finally secured the community policing pilot scheme for Tallaght. This scheme has been a very considerable success but sadly is no longer able to cope. In addition, despite very recent successes in the constituency by the Drug Squad, there is again widespread concern about alleged drug pushing, especially of illegally procured, usually prescribed, drugs. The latest representations I have had concern the fear that a clinic operated by medical doctors in one part of my constituency may have to be shut because of vandalism and break-ins to the surgery and the doctors' cars.
In addition, the threat in some cases to the personal safety of busworkers means that the transport service to some areas is at risk at night time.
I take this opportunity to say to the Minister for Justice and to the Government that, Dublin south-west urgently needs additional Garda resources and, specifically, the extension of both the juvenile liaison officer scheme which is being starved of resources and, above all, the community policing experiment. Public sector housing in Tallaght must become the responsibility of Dublin County Council and, ultimately, the new West Dublin Council in the current reform of local government. Suitable remedial detention centres must be opened for young offenders. Will the Minister comment on whether he thinks a new offences against the person Bill may be necessary in the context of modern conditions, having regard to the fact that the existing legislation has been on the Statute Book for 130 years?
I appeal to the Minister tonight to agree to meet the community leaders in Killinarden who attended this public meeting to which I referred. It is not the only area, but it is an area of acute problems at the moment.
I also appeal to the Government and the Minister to take some urgent action to break this cycle. In some of these areas unemployment is as high as 75 per cent and there is a need for the Government to address some of those black spot employment areas urgently, because of the alienation of young people who are following the lead of a small number of families of hardened criminals and who might be steered away from that path if they had employment opportunities. The situation is extremely serious. I would ask the Minister to take my word for that. The TDs of all parties for the constituency agree with my view. It is wrong that law abiding citizens feel they cannot go about their everyday duties without living in fear for their personal safety and the safety of their property.
Hearing Deputy Rabbitte paint a picture of crime and vandalism in the Dublin South-West constituency, the uninformed listener might be forgiven for mistaking the constituency for an area which has been starved of law enforcement officers and resources. This is not so. While the people of Tallaght and Clondalkin which make up the greater part of the constituency have had to bear their share of the crime problem of recent years, the Garda Síochána have been very active in both those areas. The Tallaght area in particular has seen the development of a number of policing initiatives to enhance the Garda services available to the local community to tackle the problems of petty crime and vandalism.
The efforts of the Garda Síochána in tackling crime in Clondalkin and Tallaght have not been without success. The statistics for indictable crime reported that both of these areas last year showed an aggregate reduction of no less than 9 per cent on the figures for the previous year. This is a very significant reduction by any standards and it serves as an indication that the measures being taken by the Garda Síochána are having the desired effect.
Deputy Rabbitte this evening urged the increased application of the community policing and the juvenile liaison schemes. I am a committed supporter of these schemes and I assure the Deputy that resources are not being spared in putting these schemes into operation in the communities which need them most. The community policing scheme is already well established in Tallaght and Clondalkin. There is a total of 23 members of the force engaged in this form of policing. The aim of the scheme is to build better relations between the Garda and the local community and to have a more visable Garda presence in local neighbourhoods. The Garda authorities are very pleased with the success of the scheme in Tallaght and Clondalkin and the level of manpower and resources allocated to the scheme, especially in Talllaght, shows the commitment of the Garda authorities to ensuring that an adequate Garda service is available for the protection of property and the peace of local residents.
The introduction of community policing in Tallaght was accompanied by the allocation of substantial additional manpower resources. The overall number of gardaí employed in Tallaght and Clondalkin has been increasing in recent years. Recently, two additional gardaí were assigned to Tallaght and four additional clerical assistants were assigned to Tallaght, which released members of the force to go about their crime prevention and investigation duties. The manpower needs of Tallaght and Clondalkin are being kept under review.
The Deputy mentioned the juvenile liaison officer scheme. In Tallaght at present 80 juveniles are being dealt with under the scheme. The scheme has a crucial role to play in giving young people who fall foul of the law a second chance. I share the Deputy's concern that it should work effectively and that the services of the juvenile liaison officer scheme should be available to any young offender who might benefit from a second chance option. With this in mind, I approved a package of measures last December to increase the effectiveness of the scheme.
Another initiative taken by the Garda authorities in Tallaght is the pilot project scheme set up in January in conjunction with St. Patrick's College in Drumcondra, with the wholehearted co-operation of the teachers of the area. The intention is to help children develop healtheir attitudes towards the Garda and law enforcement and to inculcate positive attitudes in relation to the prevention of vandalism, litter, care for the environment and local amenities. This scheme has worked very well in the community in Tallaght. Much of the work took place in informal contact outside of the classroom as well as inside. A mini-bus has been provided since May last year and it is available to the local gardaí to take the children on sporting trips, to visit Garda Headquarters and so on. What we are trying to do is to get local gardaí involved with the community and more and more work is being done in this regard.
I have listened carefully to the Deputy's contribution tonight in which he expressed his concern and outlined the situation which prevails as he, the parents and residents view it. I will have the matter investigated once again in the light of the outcome of the meeting held on Tuesday last, the details of which were passed to me by a number of my colleagues.
Will the Minister meet the residents?
I can assure the Deputy that I will take careful note, in conjunction with the Garda, of what is being said by all and will take whatever action that needs to be taken.