Fianna Fáil Senator Alison Comyn has raised concerns in the Seanad about rising crime and antisocial behaviour in East Meath and has renewed her call for a 24 hour, seven day a week Garda station in Laytown.
The Senator said incidents of antisocial behaviour and attempted break ins are increasing in the area, while rapidly expanding housing estates are currently being policed by a Garda station that opens for just four hours a week.
Senator Comyn said the situation in Laytown is no longer sustainable and that a new purpose built Garda station is urgently needed to serve the growing coastal communities.
Speaking in the Seanad, she said she has been inundated with distressing emails from residents in recent days.
Families in East Meath are frightened in their own homes. Residents are reporting attempted break-ins, organised groups arriving in cars in the early hours of the morning, and people living on their nerves. That is simply not acceptable in any community.
Laytown Garda Station is located in a small housing estate and currently opens only on Sundays and Mondays between 10am and 12 noon.
Senator Comyn said this does not reflect the reality of the area.
This is not a small seaside village anymore. Laytown Garda Station serves a population in excess of 35,000 people across a large and rapidly growing urban area. Our communities have expanded dramatically but policing infrastructure has not kept pace.
She said residents in newer housing estates are experiencing increasing incidents, with some reporting multiple serious events directly outside their homes, including attempted burglaries and vehicle thefts.
One resident with a newborn baby described the terror of watching several carloads of masked men arrive outside their home at 5am. Nobody should feel unsafe in their own house.
The Senator also noted that a new Garda station for Laytown was promised in 2022 and said the urgency has only grown since then.
When a station serving tens of thousands of people opens for just four hours a week, the system is clearly under strain. Residents are often reliant on Gardaí travelling long distances from Ashbourne or other stations, which can be over 40 minutes away.
Senator Comyn called on the Minister for Justice to engage directly with the issue.
I have asked that the Minister come before the Seanad so we can have a full debate on Laytown and similar fast-growing areas across the country. Communities deserve visible, accessible policing and reassurance. The time for a new 24/7 Garda station in Laytown is now.
