I welcome the statements on road safety this afternoon. I am conscious of the dreadful accident in the city centre today that many Deputies have mentioned. I know everyone's thoughts and prayers in the House are with those affected, their families and indeed the emergency services that have responded. I welcome the series of decisive actions taken by the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, in response to the death of Grace Lynch. I put on the record my own condolences to the Lynch family. The danger posed by scramblers is an issue that I and my Dublin colleagues, Deputies McAuliffe and Lahart, have raised on numerous occasions in this House. We welcome Grace's law and we want to see it implemented as soon as possible. The Minister recently visited Dún Laoghaire, where we met senior gardaí to get an update on a range of issues, including the use of scrambler bikes, antisocial and criminal activity and the need for high-visibility products. Forty new gardaí have been deployed to Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. These are welcome and are having a meaningful and visible effect. As raised by other Members of the House, enforcement is key to road safety. Risky behaviour like using a phone while driving, speeding, breaking red lights, or cycling without lights at night is unacceptable and we need to see continued enforcement. There must also be a focus on continuing to improve individual behaviour. The RSA, which has been into the House this week, has been proactive in this regard and should continue its work. This is about saving lives and preventing life-changing injuries. Locally, I welcome the recent allocation for schools such as St. Kevin's National School in Sallynoggin, which has long awaited road safety improvements on Pearse Street. I thank the Minister and his colleagues for decisively dealing with the issue of scramblers and I look forward to working with them to continue to make progress on road safety.
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