Fine Gael Emergency Motion on Knife Crime passed by Dublin City Council – McAdam

Tonight, myself and my Fine Gael colleague, Councillor Colm O’Rourke submitted an Emergency Motion for debate at the monthly City Council meeting following the recent spate of knife related criminal incidents in Dublin Central and across the city.

In raising the matter, we extended our condolences to the family of the deceased and our best wishes to those who recently been the victims of knife crimes on Seville Place, in the IFSC and O’Connell Street to name but a few.

The City Council in passing this motion has called on the Assistant Garda Commissioner with responsibility for the Dublin region to put in place a city-wide operation including high visibility policing in areas of high footfall and locations where incidents have occurred in recent weeks. I have sought to have a targeted policing approach in East Wall and North Wall. I understand that the local Chief Superintendent has now put in place such an policing initiative in these areas, which I also welcome. We have a responsibility to ensure that local communities are assured that all steps will be taken from a policing perspective to keep them, their families and neighbourhoods safe.

In addition to this, the Fine Gael motion also secured support for the demand of a early publication of the Youth Justice Strategy which has been included in the Programme for Government agreed by my party with the Greens and Fianna Fail. Both myself and Councillor Colm O’Rourke will be pursing this matter with our party colleague, Helen McEntee T.D., Minister for Justice so that the measures included in the draft strategy can be implemented.

The objective behind this strategy is to help make our communities safer while also providing positive support to our young people. Everyone is aware of the serious, and sometimes horrific consequences where young people become involved with criminal groups. We need to increase and improve our efforts to engage with young people at risk to turn them away from a life of crime.