I thank all of those who spoke. Including this week, last week and in the Seanad, there have been more than 12.5 hours of debate and questions on the migration pact, as well as numerous debates in this House prior to that and questions at the Oireachtas committee. I have listened to and been part of all those debates and responded to questions any time I have been asked. When we are talking about this, as many colleagues have said, we are talking about people and about putting structures and systems in place that a…

As the Deputy is aware, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission is an independent statutory body established in 2007 under the Garda Síochána Act 2005. Its primary role is to provide independent investigation of complaints against members of An Garda Síochána, as required, and to undertake other investigations relating to the conduct of Garda members. This is vitally important work to uphold public confidence in An Garda Síochána and, rightly, GSOC is completely independent in the exercise of its functions. The Oir…

There is nothing to suggest that this is widespread or current. In fact, the information I have seen very clearly indicates this relates to a particular case in 2016 and prior to that. In 2016, when this issue was raised, and my understanding is that this is potentially the same issue and the same case, a review was instigated. Mr. Justice Murray undertook to review the overall process that GSOC undertakes in relation to this matter. The recommendations from that suggested that there should be some changes related …

GSOC has assured me in the last week that it is acting in accordance with the law. There is nothing to suggest there are any other cases of this type. I will be very cautious in speaking about the case the Deputy has referenced because it has been suggested that a legal case may be taken but that case refers to something that happened back in 2016. Subsequently, there was a review undertaken by Mr. Justice Murray, recommendations were implemented and laws were changed at European level because of the Graham Dwyer c…

The primary purpose of vetting carried out by the Garda National Vetting Bureau is to ensure the safety of children and vulnerable adults. The Deputy will appreciate the importance of this task and the need for it to be carried out thoroughly. I believe the many organisations centred around the safety, enjoyment and comfort of children and vulnerable people understand that they must take all reasonable steps to ensure that only suitable people are recruited and employed. We all take this responsibility very serious…

I appreciate the challenges that people are facing. One of the issues that has been flagged with me as the work of the review group has been under way is that each individual group wants to be certain that the system is robust and that the people it is hiring or taking on and who may be engaging with young children or vulnerable people in their care have that certificate. At the same time, people are undertaking different processes, in some instances essentially at the same time, and we should have a better and mor…

I have not tied the hands of the review group as regards any recommendations it may make. If it has looked at what works and does not work in other jurisdictions, I am happy to take that into consideration. I know we are also to discuss Private Members' legislation here in the coming weeks.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 5, 10, 12 and 17 together. As the Deputy correctly pointed out, last month marked the 50th anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 1974. It is deeply regrettable that to date no person has been held responsible for what were absolutely barbaric attacks that killed 34 people, injured 258 and impacted many more lives. The Garda investigation files into these bombings and the murders that took place remain open. It is still an ongoing file. Any new evidence that comes to lig…

I appreciate that this has been for a long time extremely difficult for the families. In many of the Deputy's questions he has sought information as to why no Garda files relating to this case at all can be given to the families. This is an open case. This is still an open file. This is information the Garda has relating to an ongoing case. Irrespective of whether it is something as significant, large scale and devastating as this or an individual case relating to one or two people, if there is an open file, if the…

What has been made very clear is that the Garda is engaging. In fact, as regards the structures that needed to be put in place to allow the Garda to provide information where it could not with the ongoing investigation, those measures were implemented and changed in order that gardaí could provide the information they have. It has been made very clear to me that the information is being provided, that they are co-operating and that they want to engage and want to undercover the truth here, just like all of us. I ap…

I thank the Deputy for his ongoing interest in the development of the local partnerships. The Government's community safety plan is about people being safe and feeling safe in their own communities, and both of those are equally important. At the heart of this policy is the principle that every community has the right to be safe and to feel safe in order for individuals and communities to thrive and flourish. Our approach to community safety at its heart recognises that it has to be a whole-of-government, whole-of-…

A number of measures had to be taken before the partnerships could be established, accounting for how the current three pilots have operated. I am establishing a national office for community safety, which will have the overarching objective of managing and, above all, supporting and delivering the objectives of the national strategy. There will be training, guidance and other supports for the local community safety partnerships. The partnerships themselves will have dedicated staff and teams that they can work wit…

Each partnership will be supported by a dedicated community safety co-ordinator, at administrative officer grade VII, and an administrator, at assistant staff officer grade IV. Both of these will be full-time positions. The individuals will be recruited through the local authority and they will provide the support. They will be full-time staff working on the ground in the office, wherever that is identified to be. There will also be a national office that will help with training and the implementation of the variou…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. He has done so consistently, particularly in his own area. He has also raised the need for us all to do more and actively deal with the threat posed to our communities, particularly young people, by organised crime groups and those who are buying, dealing and engaging with drug dealers. The Government is absolutely committed to ensuring that the Garda has the resources it needs to tackle drug dealing and associated criminal behaviour, including by organised crime groups. T…

I agree. To reduce supply, we need to ensure we are working on an international basis and stopping the large shipments. What is clear is that the drugs seized are the tip of the iceberg, but obviously the more work the Garda can do, the more we will be seen as a country into which it is not easy to bring this level of drugs. There is work that can be done on a lower level by An Garda Síochána. I am referring to the work across the Criminal Assets Bureau. I will be tabling amendments to make it easier for gardaí to …

The most important thing is that people know that crime does not pay, whether you are a drug dealer or involved in any type of crime. That is why the work of CAB is so important. Some of my changes will make it easier and quicker for CAB to confiscate, identify and disburse the proceeds of the crime it has confiscated. It will also help to prevent criminals from frustrating the system, which they so often do. The community safety innovation fund is now taking money that has been directly seized from criminals and i…

First, I assure the Deputy, as he has probably heard, that tackling serious and organised crime is a priority for me and An Garda Síochána. I am committed to ensuring that communities right across the country have the resources and supports that they need, and most importantly people are safe and feel safe. While it is welcome that serious attacks involving firearms have fallen substantially over the last number of years, as have serious types of incidents, I am acutely aware of certain incidents that have happened…

I thank the Deputy. It is important to say that work is ongoing but I appreciate that more needs to be done. If you look at the activity of An Garda Síochána - obviously there is a limited amount of information that can be provided - so far this year, between January and May, drugs valued in excess of €12 million were seized in that region. There were 106 seizures of firearms and ammunition. That is a high number, so it is in itself quite frightening that number of seizures has taken place. Yet, it shows that An Ga…

I too commend the gardaí in the Deputy's area. I met them and appreciate, like in a lot of areas, that they are under pressure. They are doing everything they can in the interim, as we focus on getting more gardaí. There has been significant investment in resources to support gardaí in their work, whether that is more vehicles, more technology or ways to reduce the workload for gardaí working there. That is an absolute priority for me. To the Deputy's point, it is about making sure we use the resources we have now …

I assure the Deputy of my commitment and that of the Garda to dealing with all forms of drug dealing, be it individuals in the estates he mentioned or the larger organised crime groups. Of course, to deal with this on a national level, the Garda needs to make sure it does what it can, working with international partners. It also needs the resources to try and stop these loads coming into the country. This is reflected in the unprecedented of €2.35 billion provided to the Garda, an increase of about 23% in the past …