Irish Election are pleased to announce our collection of Irish 
Oh Dear scare-tactics media again.
From the Sunday Times
IRISH people are more likely to be victims of crime than any other country in the EU — according to a new European commission study.
Now that is an indictment of the government. We really have the worst crime rate in the EU. Oh wait
the report, which is based on citizens’ experience and perceptions rather than government or police figures,
So basically we don’t have the worst crime we just think we do. So who’s fault is that then? Perhaps the media for always saying crime is high.
Crime in this country is a lot less then in our neighbours. In Ireland there is 25 crimes per 1000 in England and Wales that is 113 per 1000,Scotland 86 per 1000 and Northern Ireland 69 per 1000. So we are doing something right. Crime is caused by many things much of it is social deprivation. Yet every persons favourite model of social inclusion Sweden has a higher crime rate (based on 2001 figures) and homicide rate( based on 2004 figures Swedish (Irish here)). It also has a lower imprisonment per crime and lower police per person ratios then Ireland.(based on 2001 figures).
Update: From Fine Gael.
Fine Gael Justice Spokesperson, Jim O’Keeffe TD, has today (Sunday) said that a new crime survey, which showed Irish people more at risk of crime than any other country in the EU, was proof that, after almost a decade in power, the FF/PD Government’s record on crime was one of dismal failure.
Yes the government has failed dismally to get the media to use decent figures. Off with their heads for allowing these crimes against Maths.
oh this is just silly season stuff -but it covers the four seasons
the media generally are not interested in any serious way about crime, the criminal justice system, the prison system, the kind of people who go to prison over and over again, why they go there, what happens in there, what happens when they come out
neither are they interested in the interventions the state should make in young offenders lives to stop them becoming habitual offenders
we could put the media in the dock about their sins which are mostly about not investigaing serious stories properly, and why they cant be arsed to do their work properly
a good example of the media not doing their stuff is the morris tribunal the investigation into the gardai in donegal
one journalist from donegal sitting there full time in dublin a few others dropped in and left quickly
the morris tribunal a really important investigation - but not to the media in general
it is too damned expensive to pay someone to sit all day at a tribunal into garda behaviour as far as theyre concerned
rte radio vincent brownes show to be fair are the only media who covered this in a consistent way and thats what public service broadcasting should be about
its far easier to put some crap about some non -entities from the world of pop or soccer on the front page ……..too easy
and before i go to my garden we mustnt let the opposition of the day off the hook -
they always say crime is rising no matter who they are …… it fills a space
crime is a serious issue but it should never be trivialised like this
People’s perceptions are not that wide of the mark.
Many gardaí in Ireland are bone idle and are skilled at putting pressure on people who call them not to report crimes. “Well, you’d have to come down to the station to make a statement… no I’m not sure when I’d be there, I might be on patrol.”
Even if the crime does get reported, it is likely to be ‘taken into account’ where someone collared for a different crime is told that they will get a lighter sentence if they admit to more crimes of this type.
The scope for abuse here is enormous.
william - spot on
-i agree with your point about the gardai
if they can tell you theres nothing we do can do about that- they will
it is almost as though they are taking pleasure in it
you actually hear people on radio stations telling presenters about serious issues like anti-social behaviour in messy areas and the local people start to believe that the gardai can do nothing about it -not that they are too bloody lazy to do it
and the suffering goes on for the tax paying public and the frail and the elderly
of course they can do undercover operations
it isnt the morris tribunal that has done for the gardai
its their own responses in local communities
"Yes the government has failed dismally to get the media to use decent figures."
What decent figures? The Chairman of the Expert Group on Crime Statistics wrote in 2004 that “Ireland appears to be in a relatively backward position with regard to criminal justice statistics at present”. Has something dramatic happened to the quality of the statistics since then?
Actually yes McDowell has published more stats and reformed the stats process more then any other previous justice minister.