Crime Prevention
Dail Éireann — 2025-12-10
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Charlie McConalogue (FF), Donegal

I thank the Deputy for raising this. On behalf of the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, I thank him for addressing it on the floor of the Dáil. I join the Minister, Taoiseach and the Deputy in strongly condemning the deliberate callous attack on the house in Edenderry, County Offaly, over the weekend which tragically resulted in the loss of the lives of Mary Holt and young Tadhg Farrell. I join with the Deputy in extending my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Mary and young Tadhg on this absolutely unacceptable travesty and loss of life. There is no place in a civilised society for such heinous violence.
An Garda Síochána has commenced a murder investigation into all the circumstances surrounding this fatal attack. I join An Garda Síochána in appealing to anyone with information to come forward. The gardaí have given assurances they will relentlessly pursue the violent and dangerous criminals for this murderous attack. They will be brought to justice. I appreciate that this incident will be shocking to people in the community in Edenderry and across the country and may naturally give them pause for concern about their own safety. I reassure them that the gardaí are following a direct line of inquiry and they have a strong record of bringing dangerous and violent criminals to justice.
It has been well reported that gardaí suspect criminals involved in the drugs trade in the midlands may be behind the most heinous act. Tackling the scourge of drug dealing and targeting the work of organised crime groups who inflict intimidation, violence and misery on families and communities across Ireland is a top priority for the Government and An Garda Síochána.
The Deputy mentioned Garda resources. The Government is investing record amounts in An Garda Síochána to ensure the Garda Commissioner has the resources he needs to tackle the illegal drugs trade. A Garda budget of €2.59 billion for next year will fund the recruitment of up to 1,000 new gardaí, 200 more Garda staff and a doubling of the Garda Reserve to over 600 next year. A total of 794 garda recruits entered the Garda College across 2025, the largest intake in a year since 2018. Significant numbers of gardaí have attested from the Garda college throughout this year and as more probationary gardaí attest across 2026, all communities will see a benefit as they are assigned out to their stations.
Ultimately, the Commissioner will make the decision on where Garda resources are assigned but the Minister is assured that a number of factors are taken into account, including crime trends in an area, demographics and local resourcing requirements. I assure Deputy McCormack that in relation to the heinous and murderous act we saw at the weekend that resulted in the tremendously tragic and unacceptable loss of lives, no stone will be left unturned. Every avenue will be explored to make sure that those responsible are brought to justice.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-12-10/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:27+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-10