I acknowledge the work done by serving members of An Garda Síochána, particularly community gardaí, who do their jobs under very difficult circumstances. Tackling the causes and consequences of crime is not just about law and order and it cannot be left entirely to gardaí. It is about having sufficient Garda numbers, adequately resourced, to work within the communities they serve. Community safety requires whole-of-government responsibility and an inter-agency approach. Gardaí have to battle not only against crime but also for better pay and conditions. Starting pay is less than €40,000. Gardaí are competing in a housing market that is pricing new recruits out of Dublin and indeed most areas, all while working in conditions that are simply not good enough. In my constituency, Dublin Fingal East, Swords needs a new Garda station that is fit for purpose. The existing station was built to serve what was then a village. It is now serving a population of over 41,000 and growing. The Minister is aware of this because I met him to speak to him about it in October of last year. The station serves Swords, Donabate, Portmarnock and most of Dublin Fingal East. The gardaí provide the best service they can with limited resources, but the station is simply not fit for purpose. There have been planned upgrades since 2005 and the public and the gardaí deserve better. We deserve a new, fully functional Garda station that meets the needs of the community, with its growing population, and satellite stations to serve the other growing towns served by Swords. Swords is currently part of a large district with headquarters in Coolock. The area includes Coolock, Malahide, Swords, Donabate and Rolestown, and the area all the way out to Coolquay. With the ever-growing population, future policing in the area requires the creation of a new Garda district with Swords as its centre point. The Minister has agreed to visit Swords station and see for himself the conditions that the gardaí are working in. I again extend my invitation.

Sentiment score: 0.07