Richard Guiney, CEO of Dublin Town has said that there were clearly issues about how social difficulties in Dublin were addressed.
“There are clearly issues in terms of how we deal with our social difficulties and vulnerable people. I think that can be done an awful lot better. I think we can respect the dignity of people in receipt of services a lot better than we do,” he told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland in response to a question about recent attacks in the city centre.
Mr Guiney said that while he would like to see more gardaí on the street, gardaí had acted quickly with swift arrests following the incidents.
Footfall in the city centre was now up to 90 per cent of pre pandemic levels, he said, but there had also been a significant increase in shoplifting, with more reports of increased levels of aggression amongst shoplifters, assaults on staff. But this was not just happening in Dublin, it was also happening in the UK and North America.
Fianna Fáil’s justice spokesperson Dublin TD Jim O’Callaghan added: “Parts of Dublin are unsafe at certain times during the day and night. I think that's a problem and that's an issue that we have to address. Secondly, there are other parts of Dublin where if you walk around, you can see open criminal activity, whether it's open drug dealing on the keys or sometimes violent interactions between people who are involved in drug dealing.
"So we need to describe the problem and define it before we start trying to find solutions for it. We're always going to have criminal acts in a big city. We're never going to eliminate them completely.
"But one thing that is noticeable about Dublin in comparison to other European cities is you don't see the same level of visibility of policing in Dublin as you see in other international cities. I'm conscious that the Government and the Minister have provided resources for us to recruit 1000 gardai this year.”
Mr O’Callaghan called for the current recruitment rules for the gardaí to change to allow more people join the force. He went on to defend the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee, the issue should not become a political football, he said.
Changing the Minister for Justice would not have an impact on this issue which was complex because of the high levels of drug addiction in Dublin. Policy changes were needed such as changing recruitment methods for the gardaí and using the Garda Reserve more.
Mr Guiney said having greater garda visibility would instil a degree of confidence in the public, but there remained social difficulties, post pandemic behavior issues. “I do think that things like the local community safety partnership and the Better City For All will actually work with all of the agencies to come up with the right response.
