Ivana Bacik
Question:428. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Justice if she will make a statement on the adequacy of community policing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41617/23]
View answerTuesday, 26 September 2023
Questions (428)
Written answers
As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána. This includes the allocation of Garda resources to specialist units. As Minister I have no role in these matters.
Community policing is at the heart of An Garda Síochána, and all Gardaí have a role to play in community policing in the course of carrying out their duties. Community policing is also fundamental to the new Garda Operating Model which is currently being rolled out in all 21 Divisions, and is fully commenced in seven.
The Garda authorities have advised that a member of An Garda Síochána can be deemed to be a ‘Community Garda’ where that member is allocated to a Community Policing Team (CPT) and is responsible and accountable for applying a problem–solving approach to appropriate crime and policing quality of life issues in a specified geographic area through partnership and engagement.In some rural areas, the existing personnel will form CPTs. They will have dual functions as first responders and community policing members. Additionally, CPTs will be augmented by Community Support Gardaí who will perform frontline duties and will be assigned to a particular Community Policing Area to support dedicated Community Gardaí.Each Division will have a number of CPTs assigned to it, consisting of an Inspector, Sergeant and Community Policing Gardaí. CPTs will prioritise engagement with communities for the delivery of long-term sustainable solutions to community needs.
It is important to note that community safety is not just about the number of Gardaí in communities. Community safety is a whole of Government responsibility and it requires a multi-agency approach.
The Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill will place statutory obligations on Departments and other public service bodies to cooperate with each other to improve community safety. It also establishes national structures to provide strategic direction and ensure that collaboration is working, and establishes Local Community Safety Partnerships (LCSPs), which will replace existing Joint Policing Committees.
There are currently three pilot LCSPs in Dublin’s North Inner City, Waterford, and Longford. The partnerships are made up of:
• community representatives, including residents, youth representatives, members of new and minority communities, local activists, local businesses, and representatives of schools;
• public sector representatives, i.e., local statutory services such as the HSE, Tusla, An Garda Síochána, and the local authority; and
• local councillors.
Each partnership in the pilot has created its own local community safety plan, setting out the key actions to address safety concerns in their respective communities and assigning ownership for these actions.
A final evaluation report of the LCSP pilot is expected by the end of 2023, ahead of their nationwide rollout as part of the implementation of the Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill.
In addition to the development of new Local Community Safety Partnerships, my Department committed to:
• giving An Garda Síochána the tools and technology to fight crime in a digital era by rolling out improved CCTV and body worn cameras;
• investing significant resources into An Garda Síochána to provide for sustained and ongoing recruitment, as well as investment in equipment and capital;
• implementing a range of youth justice interventions.
The Community Safety Innovation Fund, which provides funding to novel initiatives to improve community safety by reinvesting money seized as proceeds of crime, has provided for a new Community Safety Warden scheme for the Wolfe Tone Park area and surrounds of the North Inner City. I have also provided funding to launch a similar initiative on O'Connell Street on weekends.