I wish to raise a very important issue with regard to an incident which happened in my hometown of Dundalk. I am sure the Minister is aware that a video showing a cyclist being deliberately knocked off his bicycle in Dundalk by a motorist who recorded the incident has gone viral. You can hear the driver laughing as he deliberately clips the cyclist before speeding away from the scene. The cyclist was taken to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda for treatment for non-life-threatening injuries. While the kind-hearted people of Dundalk have set up a GoFundMe account that raised almost €1,000 within hours to help this man, something needs to be done on two fronts with regard to this matter, namely, tackling antisocial behaviour and the use of phones while driving.

Acts of violence and antisocial behaviour are completely unacceptable. I imagine that the Minister is aware of the effects crime and antisocial behaviour can have on the quality of life of all communities. The safety and security of the public in Dundalk are important matters that must be managed. The recruitment of up to 1,000 new Garda members and an additional 400 Garda staff in 2023 and the €2.14 billion allocated in budget 2023 are definitely welcome. I acknowledge the great work done by the Garda in Dundalk and across the north east.

Existing legislation is available to the Garda to tackle antisocial behaviour, including the public order Acts and the reduction-in-assault strategy, which includes advertising on social media with regard to the consequences of perpetrating an assault on another person. However, ongoing enforcement operations must be put in place that are aimed to tackle antisocial behaviour to reassure the public Dundalk is a safe place to live and work. I ask the Minister to give assurances that the Government will address this issue. We have a collective responsibility to make our communities safe for all. What additional measures can the Government introduce to protect the many vulnerable people affected by antisocial behaviour?

I am sure the Minister realises that we need the Garda more than ever. As stated, I welcome the allocation in the budget. However, gardaí are not happy. I have spoken to many gardaí. This week, 92 new members started training in Templemore. Why only 92? The Garda is having serious issues in the context of pay and conditions, pensions, paperwork, rostering and antisocial working hours. In view of recent assaults on gardaí, when will members of the force be trained in the use of body cameras? Gardaí are like everybody else in that they are also suffering on foot of the increase in the cost of living. Members are being told that the only way to get a good pension is to invest in additional voluntary contributions or to be promoted quickly.

When an incident happens, the first people on the scene are gardaí. We have to make sure our gardaí are being looked after and trained properly but there is a bad feeling in the Garda at present. I met many gardaí in the aftermath of the recent incident in Dundalk. I could not believe the level of their frustration. Whether it is the Minister for Justice or some other Minister, can reassurance be given to gardaí that the Government has full faith in them and that they will be given proper training, that they will be protected and that they will have access to the necessary facilities?

I thank the Deputy for raising the appalling incident in question. My first thoughts go to the cyclist involved. I am sure we all send our hopes and best wishes to the person who was subject to this crime. Our hope is that the person will make a speedy recovery from what looks to have been an appalling incident. The Deputy raised the issue with regard to the commitment of the Government to making a difference in respect of this matter. I can answer his final question directly and state that the Government has full faith in the ability of An Garda Síochána to do all that can be done to keep our roads, streets, towns and cities safe. My constituency of Dublin Central has been afflicted by many of the difficulties to which the Deputy refers. On the happy occasion of the opening of a new primary school in the heart of Seville Place in Sheriff Street by the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, I saw gardaí present there at the heart of the community, emphasising the commitment they have to community safety. This is the very best of An Garda Síochána. What it will get, what it deserves and what the Government will deliver are the resources we can make available to continue with the recruitment plans and the support it needs to make difference when it comes to the behaviour that is so appalling to the Deputy and me.

What will that look like? At the most basic and fundamental level, it will involve the commitment we have to the recruitment of additional gardaí. Our message is clear; 200 more Garda recruits will enter Templemore College every three months. They will enter that college because the biggest difference we can make to the safety of our communities is having gardaí out on the streets and visible in the hearts of our towns and cities. As the Deputy may be aware, the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, is leading a project with regard to how we can support the Garda in tackling antisocial behaviour and what can be done to make a difference to the kind of behaviour that has such an insidious effect in making our communities not feel safe and making them feel unsettled. That is the very issue in respect of which we are committed to make a difference.

I will end on a note with regard to road safety and cyclists, given the incident the Deputy has raised. The Government recognises the importance of this issue. That is why we have a commitment to spend €360 million per year with regard to active travel and greenway projects. To be clear, greenway projects do not make a difference in respect of the issue the Deputy raised, but active travel projects can. As he will be aware, there are four projects under way in his constituency to provide segregated areas for cyclists on our roads. They should not need this space to ensure that the basic obligation of being safe on our roads is met. That is a right they have. Given the issue the Deputy raised, I affirm the position regarding not only the support the Government will give An Garda Síochána but also the funding that is in place to keep our roads as safe as possible for those cycling on them.

Only 92 new members of the force started in Templemore this week. The Minister mentioned a figure of 200. Gardaí are not happy with their pay conditions, pensions, paperwork or rosters. Nearly everybody in this Chamber and outside it has, at some stage, relied on the assistance of the Garda. We in Dundalk have probably relied on their assistance more than most because, in recent years, we had the murders of Adrian Donohoe, Tony Golden and others. However, our gardaí want to know that the Government is behind them. Of all the Ministers I speak to, I really trust the Minister for Finance because he is a man of his word.

I will go back to Dundalk at the weekend and talk to these gardaí. I want the Minister to say that the Government is going to look after them. A number of gardaí were assaulted recently. In that context, body cameras are very important. The Garda wants resources. The cost-of-living crisis is also affecting gardaí. They work unsocial hours and, as far as I can see, they are not being looked after. I ask the Minister to give them the resources and training. If we did not have the gardaí in our area, we would be in a very serious position. I would be in a more serious position than most.

I come from a Border town and, with everything else at the moment, it is good to know that gardaí are there and have reinforcements. To reiterate, I ask the Minister to give confidence to the Garda that he, as Minister for Finance, will look after resources and training for these gardaí.

I understand exactly the issues that the Deputy is raising. When I go into Garda stations in my constituency, in the communities that I am lucky and privileged to represent, including Store Street, Bridewell, Mountjoy, and Cabra Garda stations, I see the immense work they do. They are public servants who are out first thing in the morning and last thing at night, frequently putting themselves on the front line and at risk to keep the rest of us safe. In addition to all of that, they do positive work to look after communities, which I see day after day in Dublin Central. On one hand, they tackle vicious criminals, and on the other hand, they go into schools to promote the standards that matter so much to us. We are doing that. It is because we want to support our gardaí and public servants that the Minister, Deputy McGrath, came to Government while we were grappling with a pandemic and, with the support of Government, said we would put in place a further public wage agreement at a time of great uncertainty in our public finances. That wage agreement was put in place because of the work that our nurses and gardaí do.

I know that when these agreements are put in place, there are always legitimate cases for more wages, changes in pensions and overtime. We appreciate that, but we need resources to provide overtime and for recruitment, while also responding to the needs of pay and pensions Deputy Fitzpatrick referred to. Our message is unambiguous; we will do all we can to support gardaí in the exceptional work they do because of the incidents Deputy Fitzpatrick referred to and the value we all place on the work of An Garda Síochána.