More Gardaí are needed on the streets of Dublin to encourage people into the city in the runup to Christmas, according to a leading business group.
Dublin Town is warning that “footfall is down and trade is struggling” in the city – with some shoppers still reluctant to visit town due to
After last year’s Dublin Riots, extra funding was announced to deploy more Gardaí to the city throughout December – and Dublin Town is calling for a similar operation to be put in place this year.
“Everybody knows that the Christmas period is the most important for traders,” Dublin Town CEO Richard Guiney told .
“This year hasn’t been as good as we’ve liked, footfall is down and trade is struggling, particularly on the northside.”
Reassurance
Mr Guiney said increasing Garda presence on the streets had a positive effect on footfall following last year’s riots.
“Last year, despite everything, we had a very good Christmas,” he said.
“Footfall was up, trade was far better than people had anticipated, and I think the Gardaí had a huge role to play in that.
“There’s a reassurance to having Gardaí on the street, people feel safer.”
According to The Dublin City Taskforce, Ireland “falls short” on policing numbers compared to the European average.
Mr Guiney welcomes the Taskforce’s recommendation to hire an additional 1,000 Gardaí, and said Dublin needs to “get to that kind of level”.
“I think it’s something that does need to be implemented,” he said.
Other recommendations
In addition to extra Gardaí, the Dublin City Taskforce outlined other ways to make Dublin safer.
These include upgrading CCTV cameras in areas considered “problematic” to facilitate real-time monitoring and “efficient analysis”.
The report also recommended re-assigning non-Garda duties to other agencies, allowing the Gardaí to focus solely on policing.
Another recommendation is to assign a City Warden to liaise with local businesses, promote social activities and enforce bye-laws relating to littering and anti-social behaviour.
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