More resources are needed in the Mid-West region to tackle a rampant drugs problem according to Sinn Féin TD Maurice Quinlivan.
The Limerick deputy challenged the Government to publish immediate legislation to deal with ongoing gangland and drug issues in the Mid-West during a debate Order of Business on gang warfare in the Dáil last week.
““It is wrong to assume drug crime has been eliminated in Limerick. Drugs are still a huge factor in the city’s informal economy and criminal elements continue to make huge profits while destroying communities and trading in misery”.
Quinlivan, the Sinn Féin spokesperson for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation believes a greater influx of Gardaí to the city plus an expansion of the CAB to tackle the drug and gangland problems.
“Limerick needs extra resources to fight this scourge and I am calling on the Minister for Justice to allocate an additional 100 Gardaí to the city. It’s high time for the Criminal Assets Bureau to be expanded in Limerick and for the Government to amend the Proceeds of Crime Acts to ensure money seized by CAB goes back into communities affected by drugs”.
According to the TD, cuts to the Mid-West Regional Drug and Alcohol Forum need to be addressed and he called on the Tánaiste, Frances Fitzgerald to be more imaginative in her role as Minister for Justice.
“The Mid-West Regional Drug and Alcohol Forum have taken cuts of more than 50% since 2008. The cuts have impacted massively on the delivery of vital services that are urgently needed in Limerick City. The Minister must be imaginative and redirect money seized from criminals to directly fund organisations delivering these vital services in the field. This would be an important step in the battle against drug crime.”