The promise of a greater Garda presence on Dublin streets is welcome, following a spate of recent high-profile assaults. Garda commissioner Drew Harris points to figures showing that the number of assaults has not risen, saying that in many ways Dublin is safer than other European capitals. However, as well as assaults themselves, open drug-dealing on the streets and often-related aggressive behaviour are common in some areas of the city centre. Action is needed and an additional Government allocation of €10 million will help to increase Garda visibility.
A meeting between senior Garda management and city centre business owners from the Dublin Town organisation in Dublin yesterday led to a general welcome for the high-visibility strategy, seen as essential to public confidence. The gardaí and Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said the availability of the armed support unit would only be, as now, on a when-needed basis. But it seems that a more assertive policing style will be in evidence – perhaps not quite zero-tolerance but a response to public concern.
All sides agree that policing is only part of the answer. A plan also including local authorities, businesses, community groups and education and healthcare providers is also promised.
This is not a new idea. In 2012 a so-called " Better City for All” programme took a similar approach, aimed in particular at substance abuse and anti-social behaviour. That we are back now looking at similar issues is in part a recognition of the inevitable need, from time to time, to renew efforts and start again. But it also shows that some of the recommendations brought forward at that time, such as better drug services in local communities to stop people having to come into city centres to access them, remain in many cases to be delivered.
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While recognising the seriousness of what happened, Harris argues that the kind of assaults seen here in recent weeks would not have hit the headlines in other European capitals. In some cases, at least, this is debatable. And as well as the impact on the individuals involved and their families, the events have led to many other stories of anti-social behaviour being aired, as well as feeding the public perception that parts of the city are a no-go area, particularly at nighttime.
In some cases these concerns may, indeed, be overdone. But the wider degradation of the physical space that is Dublin city centre post-pandemic is clear, requiring policy responses from local authority management and planners and also from Government.
A few months of action followed by a relapse will not be enough. The kind of multi-agency response needed is something which Ireland has often struggled to sustain. Leadership will be needed to ensure that this time is different.