Fianna Fáil unhappy with Minister for Justice's 'failure' to tackle crime

Kenneth Fox

A number of Fianna Fáil TDs have expressed dissatisfaction with Minister for Justice Helen McEntee over what they described as her “failure” to tackle crime in Dublin.

As the Irish Examiner reports, a number of Dublin TDs held a regular meeting on Tuesday, which consisted of Jim O'Callaghan, Paul McAuliffe, and John Lahart, as well as senator Mary Fitzpatrick.

One member present at the meeting said there is “disquiet” among Fianna Fáil TDs over Ms McEntee’s failure to tackle “deep-rooted issues in communities”.

A Fianna Fáil TD who was not at the meeting also claimed that some Fine Gael TDs are unhappy and wanted action taken to ensure there is pressure on gardaí to redirect more staff to “areas of concern”.

Ms McEntee has faced scrutiny in recent days following scenes of lawlessness in Cherry Orchard, Dublin, where a garda car was rammed as local gangs cheered on.

One member said: “I wouldn’t go as far as saying we don’t have confidence in the minister, but it’s not far off it.

“If this was a Fianna Fáil minister, they’d be under a lot of pressure.

"The general feeling is that she does not seem to understand how tricky the situation is in certain areas and doesn’t have a grasp of it.”

A second Fianna Fáil source said the issues in Dublin have been "bubbling under" for some time, and that Ms McEntee is "too passive" and "too hands-off".

They added that the relationship between gardaí and some communities had been deteriorating for some time, but criticised what they felt was Ms McEntee's focus on social issues.

"She's more interested in making woke comments," the source said.