Gardaí must be visible this Halloween, says TD

There must be a high visibility presence of Gardaí in communities across Dublin to reduce incidents of anti-social behaviour as people take part in Halloween festivities, according to a Fine Gael TD.

Dublin Fingal TD Alan Farrell said the creation of a new National Office for Community Safety will help “combat crime and build stronger, safer communities.”

Farrell, who serves as Fine Gael’s Justice spokesperson, said “anti-social behaviour has a devastating impact on communities, and I know it is an issue of huge concern to citizens.”

“Indeed safety is at the forefront of everyone’s mind on weekends like this with people of all ages out enjoying Halloween events and festivities.”

“With that in mind, it is essential that there is a high presence of Garda in communities, public spaces and near to public transport hubs to prevent public order incidents and anti-social behaviour.

“Operation Tombola, which targets the supply of illegal fireworks, has already seen large-scale seizures of fireworks which is positive and will help reduce the risk of injury to people and fatalities over Halloween.”

Farrell called for “high-visibility policing” which he said would help make people “feel safer” and would as a deterrent to those who engage in criminal activity and anti-social behaviour.

“The 25% increase in Garda overtime announced in the Budget will help the force ensure more Gardaí are on the beat. Plans to increase the upper age limit for garda entry is a sensible to change to the recruitment and retention process that will hopefully yield positive results in encouraging more people to consider joining the force.”

“Numbers in Templemore continue to increase, with attestations every 3 months – 135 trainees entered the training college in February and another 154 in May. Another class of 174, the largest class since Covid, entered the college at the end of July, continuing the building momentum in recruitment.”

“Keeping our communities secure now and in the future is a top priority for Minister McEntee and Fine Gael, and all of these actions reflect that commitment,” he said.