On behalf of the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, I thank Deputy McGrath for submitting this Topical Issue and acknowledge the concerns raised in relation to the very serious issue of drink spiking. Spiking is a crime that preys on vulnerability, that undermines consent and that can have devastating consequences for victims. The Government is committed to taking a zero-tolerance approach to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The final implementation plan for the third national zero-tolerance strategy on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence was launched in June and sets out the delivery targets and collective action needed to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence to the end of 2026. The programme for Government also includes a commitment to introduce stronger laws to combat the spiking of drinks. Currently, there is no specific crime type of spiking. Spiking may be reported as an independent offence in the form of poisoning, or it may be used by offenders to facilitate the commission of other crimes. Spiking a person’s drink or spiking someone by injection are, in effect, poisoning offences under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, which can result in a three-year prison term. Section 12 of that Act applies to anyone who intentionally or recklessly administers a substance capable of interfering substantially with another person’s bodily functions, which explicitly includes inducing unconsciousness or sleep. A person guilty of the offence of poisoning may be subject to a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment. Depending on the nature of the substance administered, it may be possible to charge a perpetrator with endangerment under section 13 of the Act. This provides that it is an offence to intentionally or recklessly engage in conduct that creates a substantial risk of death or serious harm to another. The offence of endangerment carries a maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment. An Garda Síochána takes all reports of spiking seriously and investigates thoroughly to determine the exact nature of each incident, including through the results of toxicology reports. The nationwide roll-out of the divisional protective services units has ensured that victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based crimes presenting to An Garda Síochána are met with a consistently high standard of specialist, sensitive, professional and expert assistance. There is now a protective services unit in every Garda division. An Garda Síochána advises any victim of an incident or spiking to report it to their local gardaí. The Garda continues to engage with partner agencies in monitoring the reporting of these matters for early warning of any identified patterns. These partner agencies include the HSE, the Health Protection Surveillance Centre and the Health Products Regulatory Authority. Any incident of this type, including those where there is evidence to suggest a link with spiking, will be investigated either by local gardaí or those supported by or attached to the divisional protective services unit.
Sentiment score: -0.34
Again, I thank the Deputy for raising what is a very serious issue. I acknowledge that the incident in question was very serious for the person and family on whose behalf he is raising this matter. Combating and eradicating sexual and gender-based violence is one of our core priorities. The programme for Government reaffirms our commitment to introducing stronger laws to combat the spiking of drinks. This is a specific and targeted commitment to protect people, particularly in the night-time economy, and to ensure our laws are robust enough to hold perpetrators to account. It sits within the overarching goal of the prosecution pillar of the zero-tolerance plan, which is to ensure that our justice system effectively vindicates the rights of victims and survivors. Our Department will progress this important work to strengthen the law, ensuring those who carry out this cowardly act face the serious consequences they deserve. While the zero-tolerance plan contains 95 distinct actions across prevention, protection and prosecution, the promise to strengthen laws against drink spiking is a fundamental component of our mission. It demonstrates our resolve to address all forms of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence and to adapt our laws to tackle specific threats as they arise. As a Government, we are dedicated to making our communities safe for everyone. I assure the Deputy I will make the Minister and the Department, and, by extension, An Garda Síochána, aware of the issue he has raised here on the floor of the Dáil in view of the seriousness of the incident and his call for a review of the protocol.
Sentiment score: 0.23
I am responding on behalf of the Minister for justice to the issue that was raised. We in Ireland are lucky to have a police service in An Garda Síochána that has the widespread community support that has been hard earned over decades of service to the State and to our people. The common refrain from the public is that they want more gardaí in their community and on their streets. This is certainly not the case in many other jurisdictions in the world. This is because An Garda Síochána undertakes an important role in upholding and protecting the human and constitutional rights of everyone in our community. It does this by providing a high quality, effective policing service in partnership with the community and in co-operation with other agencies. In relation to the use of incapacitant spray, it is one of a number of tactical options available to gardaí when faced with the use of force or the threat of violence when it is reasonable to believe that such force or threat of violence may result in injury to themselves or others. Information on the use of force, including the use of incapacitant spray, is published on the Garda website and in the Commissioner’s monthly reporting to the Policing and Community Safety Authority. The right to protest peacefully is enshrined in our Constitution and legislation. An Garda Síochána, through its human rights-led approach to policing, seeks to uphold and protect the right to freedom of assembly and to protest while also upholding the law and protecting the safety of the public when required. Balancing the right to protest with protecting the public and upholding the law is a complex task. An Garda Síochána's policing approach to protests is focused on keeping the public at large safe and preventing antisocial or criminal behaviour while respecting the right to peaceful assembly under the Constitution. Protests create operational challenges for An Garda Síochána, especially where those protestors engage in force against Garda members and seek to push violently through cordons. Factors such as the number of persons protesting, the location of protests and actions at the protest as well as the health and safety of all, including gardaí, require significant assessment. A detailed policy document on the use of incapacitant spray has been developed by An Garda Síochána and is publicly available on its website. The fundamental principle underpinning this policy is that any action taken which requires a member of An Garda Síochána to use an incapacitant spray must comply with the fundamental principles of legality, necessity, proportionality and accountability. It must also be applied in a non-discriminatory manner in accordance with the principles of the European Convention on Human Rights. In policing protests, it should be noted that the Garda engages in a gradual response that is reasonable. Where physical force is used against members of An Garda Síochána, they are entitled to respond in a proportional manner. I agree with the Deputy that there is a right of protest in this country, but I do not think the right of protest should allow a bunch of protesters to lock down this city by blocking Dublin Port as they did. They had no right to do that. They should not do that. They inconvenienced the entire city. I wonder does the Deputy support the idea, the principle or the action of locking down this city by blocking Dublin Port. Does the Deputy think that is right? I certainly do not, and millions of people around the country do not either. I think I have responded in a comprehensive manner to the Deputy regarding the issues she has raised. I support An Garda Síochána and its actions. I have seen the videos in this regard. Protestors have a right to protest, and in this case they were protesting about something that is fundamental, and all of us in this House support trying to sort out the issues in Palestine, but locking down the Dublin Port tunnel does not achieve anything. I would like to hear what the Deputy has to say in this regard. Does she agree with and did she support blocking the Dublin Port tunnel and reducing this city to a mass gridlock? Did she agree with it and does she agree with it?
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That is not true.
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That is not true.
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It is not true.
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That is not true.
Sentiment score: -0.33
What about locking down the city and the tunnel?
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The Dublin Port tunnel.
Sentiment score: 0.00
You see, the Deputy tries to own the argument every way. She does not have a monopoly on concern for the Palestinians. I have been to the Middle East. I have been to Palestine and to Ramallah and Hebron. I have walked the streets of East Jerusalem. I have been to the settler communities and seen the impact those have on the people of Palestine. The Deputy does not have a monopoly on concern for the Palestinians. She likes to present that she has a monopoly on it. The protestors do not have a monopoly on it. This Government has done more than any other Government across Europe in terms of trying to highlight and support the cause of the Palestinian people. I wonder if the Deputy thinks that locking down Dublin and reducing it to gridlock and impacting hundreds of thousands of people is acceptable. The Deputy failed to address it. Did she support it and does she support it? She obviously does by her silence.
Sentiment score: 0.08
You cannot have it both ways. You want to have it both ways. The Deputy thinks we can just lock down Dublin city centre every single day of the week.
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That is what the Deputy is saying, because if it is okay once, then it is okay twice. Where does it go from there then? The Garda was right and acted completely correctly in my view.
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I have seen the video and I will support every single member of An Garda Síochána who policed that event because they were looking out for the hundreds of thousands of people around this city and region who-----
Sentiment score: 0.40
-----have an absolutely right go about their business and use the public roads to get on with their business, get home to their families, do their day-to-day activities, get to work, get home, rear their children and bring their kids to their clubs and their sports. The Deputy, though, seems to think that locking down Dublin is acceptable.
Sentiment score: 0.16
No, it is not. People are absolutely entitled to protest. Nobody disputes that. The Deputy, though, wants to elevate it and bring it to a place where it actually discredits what they are protesting for, and that is regrettable.
Sentiment score: -0.32