Councils ‘forced to uphold the law’
The introduction of a housing estates investigator proves councils can't wait any longer for help and find themselves forced to hire their own private lawmen, said FG justice spokesman John Deasy.
The private law enforcer, hired by Thurles Town Council in Co Tipperary and funded by the Department of the Environment, will deal with drug-dealing, anti-social behaviour and intimidation in housing estates, he said.
Describing the appointment of the Tenant Liaison and Investigations Officer as a significant development, Mr Deasy said it undermined the position of the Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell.
"After almost two years of bluster from Michael McDowell, the end result is that local authorities are being forced to take the law into their own hands. It is fair to ask what powers this individual will have and whether or not the Department of Justice has communicated with the Department of the Environment about such an individual's authority in policing matters," he said.
But a Department of Environment spokesman said the estates management initiative - under which Thurles Town Council is getting a grant of €34,000 to hire the officer was not about policing. While accepting that the officer would carry out an investigative work on foot of complaints, the spokesman said the role was predominantly about preventing anti-social behaviour.
"The purpose of the grant is to put in place a preventative strategy and also to liaise within the estate," the spokesman said.
Yet Mr Deasy said the reason the investigations officer was being introduced was because residents were afraid to got to the Garda Síochána, due to intimidation.
The way to deal with crime levels remained the same and involved improved policing methods, a greater visible deterrent and adequate resourcing for the gardaí, he said.
"Not that long ago this government was promising 2,000 extra gardaí. Now we've reached the point where local authorities can't wait any longer for help and find themselves forced to hire their own private lawmen. This is a very disturbing development for law enforcement in this country," added Mr Deasy.
