Fianna Fáil with eyes on justice portfolio pledges to make Dublin safer

By Cillian Sherlock, PA

Dublin would be safer with a Fianna Fáil minister for justice, senior party figures have suggested.

The party’s justice spokesman Jim O’Callaghan said work needed to be done to tackle the feeling that the capital is not safe at certain times.

Mr O’Callaghan said the party would introduce 1,000 more gardaí in the city, adding: “We want to make Dublin safer.”

Several Fianna Fáil representatives, including deputy leader and Finance Minister Jack Chambers as well as Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien, gathered at Sandymount Strand to launch the party’s Dublin-centred policy document for the General Election.

Asked if Fianna Fáil would be willing to sacrifice the housing portfolio for justice, Mr O’Brien told reporters: “We want both.”

He added: “On justice, like Jim has outlined it here: People in many parts of Dublin, particularly at night, don’t feel safe in the centre of our city.

“That needs to change – and with Fianna Fáil, that will change.”

Mr Chambers said Fianna Fáil was focused on building a more liveable city and ensuring economic growth in the capital.

The document comes almost one year after Ireland’s capital was beset by rioting, which renewed a focus on policing in the city.

The party claims it will deliver a safe Dublin through “increased policing and a crackdown on anti-social behaviour”.

Fianna Fáil wants more gardaí participating in “frontline policing” and expanded use of body-worn cameras. The party also wants a dedicated transport police unit.

Fianna Fáil would allow gardaí to use facial recognition technology and remove face coverings at protests, increase penalties for public-order offences.

Previously flagged measures include the introduction of dispersal orders and “public space protection orders”.

The party also wants to decriminalise the possession of cannabis for personal use but introduce laws to require those found in possession of illegal drugs to attend treatment or education programmes.

It would also mandate social media platforms to share drug-related information with gardai and criminalise tools used in drug trafficking like pill presses.

Sinn Féin spokeswoman Louise O’Reilly said long-standing serious issues with crime in the city have not been “tackled in any serious way” by Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael.

She called for a renewed garda recruitment campaign and added: “Dublin’s unsafe streets are a legacy of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in government.”

Fianna Fáil’s “Dublin manifesto” includes a €175 million “urban communities initiative” to revitalised disadvantaged areas with youth programmes and community development measures.

It further pledges the delivery of affordable housing and childcare as well as accessible healthcare.

Fianna Fáil also said it wants to “foster a culture of entrepreneurship” with its supports for businesses, as well as making Dublin a hub for AI and digitisation.

Elsewhere, the party pledged to deliver the Metrolink, expand the Dart network and remove the Dublin airport passenger cap “as soon as possible”.

The document includes a €250 million fund for a “parks and pitches fund” to acquire new parks and playing fields as well as other measures for arts and culture – including funding for a night-time economy strategy.