More gardai and a hefty tourist tax get proposed to “improve Dublin city”

To improve security in the city core, the Dublin City Taskforce has suggested deploying 1,000 more gardaí, reports RTE.

In addition, the committee, which was led by David McRedmond, the chief executive of An Post, proposed that a tourist tax or congestion charge be used to help earn part of the projected €750 million to €1 billion in capital investment needed to carry out its proposals.

The group was formed in May of last year to devise a strategy to revive the capital following the riots in November 2023 and the Covid-19 epidemic, reports RTE.

Speaking at the report’s release, Mr. McRedmond stated that although determining what taxes should be collected to finance Dublin’s revitalisation was outside the group’s purview, “it’s saying what happens in other cities. Tourist taxes are in almost every city in Europe, and raises considerable funds, mainly to maintain the public realm, to maintain the streetscape, to maintain greenery”.

“And that’s really effective, and tourists are used to it, but I don’t know what the impact would be in the sector, so that’s really an issue for Government,” reports RTE.

Asked whether an impending general election would slow the pace of change, Mr McRedmond said: “The Taoiseach has called together the main departments in government that have to deliver this, and he wants their plan before Christmas, and that will be delivered for whoever the government is…Dublin cannot wait another four or five years. If we wait four or five years, we’ll get left behind as a city,” reports RTE.

The city’s throbbing heart has always been the GPO and O’Connell Street, according to Taoiseach Simon Harris, who also stated that his government will form an interdepartmental committee to work on the building.

“Dublin is a capital for everyone,” he remarked, reports RTE.

Ten recommendations are made in the study to enhance the capital’s security and state in the upcoming years.

Regarding security, the taskforce suggested that 1,000 additional gardaí be deployed over the following three years.

According to the report, Dublin’s police-to-resident ratio is below the European norm, with one garda for every 373 residents, whereas the EU average is one police officer for every 293 persons, reports RTE.

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