Any assaults against members of the public are totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated. I would encourage anyone who has been a victim of or witnessed crime in the area to report it to An Garda Síochána without delay.
I engage regularly with the Garda Commissioner to ensure that he has the resources that he needs to fight crime, and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy. This is reflected in the record allocation of €2.59 billion in the Garda Vote for 2026 which will support the continued recruitment of Gardaí and Garda staff.
The Garda budget will fund the recruitment of up to 1,000 new Gardaí, 200 more Garda staff and a doubling of the Garda Reserve to over 600 next year. An additional 392,000 overtime hours will meet the sustained demand for a visible and responsive policing presence.
Recruitment to An Garda Síochána is gathering momentum and we now have a steady pipeline of new recruits entering Garda College. 194 new Gardaí attested from the Garda College last week and to date in 2025, 39 probationer Gardaí have been assigned to stations in the DMR North Division.
I have been assured by the Garda Commissioner that the high visibility policing plan in place in Central Dublin will continue and the Commissioner has outlined his plan to replicate this approach in other areas of the DMR.
Along with increasing Garda numbers and Garda visibility, the Government is supporting ongoing actions to tackle anti-social behaviour and build safer communities, including:
• Continuing the expansion of youth justice and youth diversion measures.
• Introducing Community Safety Partnerships around the country, to develop Community Safety Plans for every area.
• Piloting Garda body-cams in three locations (Dublin, Waterford, Limerick) with national roll-out to follow. Budget 2026 includes €19 million to begin the national roll-out of Body Worn Cameras at scale.
The Government’s investment in Youth Justice initiatives was boosted by €7.3 million in Budget 2026, to €43 million, a 22% increase on Budget 2025.
From An Garda Síochána's perspective, a long-term strategic approach to tackle anti-social behaviour in communities assists in addressing potential problems before they arise. An Garda Síochána work collaboratively with Local Authorities, community leaders and groups to find solutions to problems associated with anti-social behaviour.
I can assure the Deputy that An Garda Síochána will always be on hand to respond to serious incidents, implement local policing plans as necessary and provide crime prevention advice to address the needs of the communities they serve.
Local Community Safety Partnerships (LCSP) represent a significant step towards a more collaborative, responsive, and locally driven model of public safety. They will bring together a broad range of relevant stakeholders to address community safety issues in their area which will include residents, local councillors, community representatives business and education representatives, and a range of public services including the HSE, Tusla, An Garda Síochána and the local authority. A core part of their work will be to draft a Community Safety Plan tailored to the community's needs.
My Department has also examined and introduced initiatives to tackle knife crime, responses to anti-social behaviour in housing complexes, the misuse of scramblers and quadbikes and the powers available to An Garda Síochána in relation to public order offences.
The Government is determined to take both immediate and long-term measures to tackle all forms of crime and build safer communities for us all to enjoy.
