Community patrols - Scheme must be backed by garda action

OF all cities, it is entirely fitting that Limerick is the first in Ireland to embrace a scheme in which community coordinators will patrol local areas and help identify social problems.

Unfortunately, Limerick’s troubled image has been worsened by the lethal activities of feuding families locked in deadly drug turf wars.They have imposed a reign of terror on communities, subjecting decent, peace-loving people to appalling intimidation.

Under the country’s first community pilot scheme, eight local coordinators, six men and two women, will walk the streets, keeping in touch with local people.