Additional legislation to better protect Gardaí while they are responding to potential breaches of the new “Grace’s Law” is essential, Fine Gael TD Naoise Ó Muirí has said.
“Over the last number of months, constituents have contacted my office to flag their concerns about the ability of members of An Garda Siochána to pursue scramblers being operated illegally in their communities,” the Dublin Bay North TD said.
“When I raised these concerns in the Dáil in February, asking what measures would be taken to support Gardaí in pursuing scramblers, on the basis that many Gardaí feel discouraged from doing so, I was informed that these were matters for the Garda Commissioner; now this week we see that a serving Garda has been disqualified for two years for dangerous driving after he pursued two masked individuals riding scrambler bikes in our capital city in 2024,” he said.
“The Garda Commissioner has called for legislative change in this area to bring clarity to the situation whereby a member of An Garda Siochána is involved in an accident while undertaking enforcement activities.
“Ultimately, we cannot expect members of An Garda Síochána to wield enforcement powers effectively without the proper legal backing to do so. We should look to our European counterparts who exercise legal powers to protect their police forces while in the line of duty.
“The legislative gap currently curtailing our Gardaí must be closed. We need to ensure that those who serve to protect our communities are afforded the same protection by the State” concluded Ó Muirí.