The outrageous, dastardly attack last weekend on the home of Garda Inspector Willie Stratford in Raheny in my constituency is the latest, extreme example of the growing problem of intimidation of urban communities and, in this case, a garda. I condemn in the strongest possible terms this cowardly, despicable and utterly irresponsible attack and sympathise with Inspector Stratford and his family. I hope the perpetrators of that outrageous crime will be brought to justice speedily.
There has been a great increase in the amount of intimidation and harassment of householders and residents, especially of those involved in community leadership, such as members of tenants associations, neighbourhood watch groups and those endeavouring to improve the quality of life of their communities throughout the north side of this city. For example, in a very socially deprived area in my constituency, a large housing estate of approximately 900 houses in north Coolock, three families were forced out of their homes by gangs over a two week period. Two such homes were subsequently razed to the ground at an approximate net cost of £50,000, to Dublin City Council.
Another similar incident took place in my constituency in a flat complex, comprising approximately 100 flats. Drug gangs attempted to take over that complex, viciously intimidating anybody who attempted to oppose them in their efforts. When visiting a constituent in that complex recently I noticed nine or ten people openly engaging in drug dealing at the entrance. That is totally intolerable for residents, families and the community.
There has always been the problem of harassment of urban communities on the north side. An official of Dublin Corporation, Mr. Michael Kelly, the authority's housing officer, wrote an outstanding report on the essence of the problem, on the reason families who were considered to be slightly different on account of race, religion or whatever were singled out for harassment. This problem has recently exploded, spreading like a plague across the north side of the city, with even a Garda officer being singled out for attack.
The position is intolerable and the Government must take decisive action to resolve it. Indeed a famous phrase of the Leader of the British Labour Party "tough on crime; tough on causes of crime" must be the policy also of all Members of this House and is certainly that of my party. The previous Government was tough on crime, and implemented many worth-while programmes which have been supported by the present administration. This Government is investing the money to tackle this problem.
It is outrageous that people who have contempt for the democratic process should attempt to undo everything already achieved. The Minister for Justice must impress on all local authorities that one of their main responsibilities is to ensure that never again will the victims of this type of harassment and intimidation be forced to leave their homes; rather its perpetrators should be forced to move. Very often those perpetrators are known. I am proud of the fact that the new housing manager of Dublin Corporation is beginning to take action.
There is need for an urgent, national programme to combat this type of criminal activity. In this respect the Minister should introduce immediately the juvenile justice Bill which was in course of preparation during the period of office of the previous Government. This would alert parents to their responsibilities and make them aware that if their children are harassing others, they may lose their home.
I listened earlier this evening to the debate on the Criminal Law (Bail) Bill, 1995 in respect of which the Minister advanced some interesting proposals to counter some outrageous crimes committed by people while on bail. The Minister, who represents another constituency on the north side of the city, will be aware that a shortage of gardaí is inhibiting the resolution of this problem. For example, in my constituency there are approximately 200 gardaí to cater for up to 100,000 citizens, if I include my ward. That is a bad ratio and does not allow for the necessary type of hour to hour observation of trouble spots which is necessary in some housing complexes.
While I accept that the Minister, with her colleagues, has established an interdepartmental committee to devise an urgent programme of action to combat crime, the position prevailing is critical, warranting immediate action. We must ensure that the despicable incident which took place in the early hours of last Saturday morning at the home of a servant of this State, a blatant attack on our democracy, never recurs.
