I am aware of the tragic case of Joe Drennan. As the Minister said, I will get back to the Deputy in respect of it. Obviously, I cannot deal with issues arising from specific sentences imposed in individual cases but it is the case that in certain instances, consecutive sentences appear to be more appropriate than concurrent sentences. There is a benefit in clarifying that across the board.

Sentiment score: 0.24

I thank the Deputy. I was asked a straight question yesterday and I gave a straight answer. Before I was appointed as Minister for Justice I was asked whether parts of Dublin are unsafe at certain times and I said that they are. I am not going to change my answer simply because it is convenient to do so. I emphasise, however, that I would have thought that if people in this House were asked whether Stoneybatter was a safe place on a Sunday afternoon, they all would have said that it was a safe place. Obviously, circumstances can arise that make it unsafe. I am committed to ensuring that Dublin is safe. The best way to do so is to ensure that we have more Garda visibility. The Deputy and I both support that. I assure him that in my engagements with the Garda Commissioner, the primary point I keep making is that we want to see more gardaí on the streets.

Sentiment score: 0.46

I thank Deputy Gogarty for his question. There is a reference to this matter in the programme for Government. I am committed to trying to bring forward that scheme. As the Deputy identified, this issue was raised by Jason Poole in respect of the tragic death of his sister, Jennifer. We met him. This is of benefit to people who find themselves in relationships with individuals who have a history. It is unusual that we do not have a register of convictions in this country whereby if somebody is convicted of a violent assault against their partner, the matter will not be registered and we will not find information in respect of it unless a journalist is in court on the day. I spoke to the Garda Commissioner about this last Friday. I have organised a meeting in my Department in respect of it. I remain committed to bringing forward the scheme to which I refer.

Sentiment score: 0.06