The latest crime figures show a dramatic increase in violent crimes against the person, and a significant increase in other types of crime.
Headline figures from the Garda Commissioner's Crime Report for 2001, released by the Department of Justice yesterday, show an increase in assaults of 93 per cent over the previous year, and an increase in sexual offences of 83 per cent. Murders increased by 33 per cent.
There was also a significant increase in burglaries and drug offences. Burglaries were up by 1,878, or about 8 per cent, and robberies by 257, about 9 per cent.
Total crime figures for 2001 show an 18 per cent increase on 2000, a reversal of previous trends, where crime had been falling from the mid-1990s.
The headline statistics are contained in the Garda Commissioner's Crime Report for 2001, which is currently being finalised and will be published as soon as it is completed, according to the Minister for Justice.
Commenting on the figures, Mr McDowell said they were disappointing and worrying. He said that such an increase required urgent analysis of the underlying causes of the increase in crime and priority action to deal with it.
"The figures are, therefore, now being analysed in detail for the purpose of identifying specific and targeted responses to the problems emerging in particular areas."
The Minister said he had obtained Government approval to implement key recommendations of the National Crime Council, including the establishment of an expert group on crime statistics and the conducting of a biennial national crime victimisation survey.
He also said he considered that the three-pronged approach towards offending behaviour already in operation remained valid. "We must first tackle the causes of crime, which involves addressing a wide range of social issues, such as marginalisation, educational and social deficits, housing issues, questions of parental responsibility and so on.
"Second, we must ensure that all aspects of the criminal law are adequate to combat crime and protect the public. I am examining as a priority the need for additional measures in this regard.
"The third essential is to ensure that sufficient resources are available to the criminal justice system generally, and to ensure that these resources are used to optimum effect."
Mr McDowell pointed out that the Government was already committed to the expansion of prison capacity and an increase in Garda numbers of 2,000.
He added that he was very committed to changes in the management and organisation of the Garda, and by the end of this year or the beginning of next year would bring in a Bill outlining reforms.
He told The Irish Times he was surprised by the dramatic increase in the figures which, he said, probably resulted from several causes.
"The PULSE recording system in the Garda probably meant more effective recording of crime," he said. "Drink is another factor, though if does not explain the rise in burglaries and robberies.
"The recording of public order offences depends on gardaí being on the streets at the time," he said, while not disputing that there had been an increase in the figures last year.
The Labour Party spokesman for justice, Mr Pat Rabbitte, accused the Government of withholding the figures until after the election. He claimed the figures had been in the possession of the Department of Justice for months.
Mr McDowell disputed this, saying that the figures had only been in his department for 48 hours, and had been published with unprecedented speed. The covering letter from the Garda Commissioner, accompanying the figures, is dated July 24th.
In a statement, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties commended the Minister for releasing the figures promptly. Acting director Mr Liam Herrick said that the previous government had wasted large amounts of resources passing draconian criminal legislation and increasing police powers while failing to address the causes of crime.
The Sinn Féin spokesman for justice, Mr Aengus Ó Snodaigh, called on the Minister to end his campaign against Travellers and asylum-seekers and concentrate on tackling crime.