Firms 'have little faith in gardaí'

JUST 2% of small businesses have any confidence in the criminal justice system to deter repeated criminal activity, according to a new survey.

The poll which was carried out by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprise Association (ISME) found that nearly 40% of businesses which had reported a crime were not satisfied with the garda response.

The small firms lobby group has estimated that, based on the findings, crime has cost the sector €2 billion per annum in direct costs.