Crackdown needed on knife crime following Garda assault – O’Connell

Urgent action is needed to tackle the growing threat of knife crime, following violent incidents last week and over the weekend in which Gardai were assaulted with bladed weapons, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Speaking this afternoon, Deputy Maeve O’Connell said: “The fact that our Gardai are being injured with bladed weapons more and more often is deeply disturbing. I want to extend my full support to the Gardai injured on duty both last week and over the weekend and wish them a full and speedy recovery.

“This incident is yet another reminder that knife crime is not a distant issue, with the distressing incident over the weekend taking place right in my own constituency, and it is putting lives at risk, including those of the Gardaí who protect us.

“Last year, then Minister for Justice Helen McEntee brought in tougher sentencing laws to serve those committing knife crimes with longer prison sentences.

“We need to keep up the crackdown on knife crime. That means strong enforcement, tougher checks at points of sale to control the flow of these weapons, and a renewed focus on prevention and education, particularly among young people”.

Deputy O’Connell said she will be raising the issue directly with the Minister for Justice and calling for a review to ensure frontline officers are fully supported in the face of this threat.

“No one should go to work fearing they’ll be attacked with a weapon. We owe it to our Gardaí and to every community affected by this violence to act now.

“The news last week that over 1,000 weapons have been handed in as part of a UK amnesty operation shows that taking these weapons off our streets is possible, and we need to act now”, concluded Deputy O’Connell.