A new security allowance for Councillors has been labelled 'a sad state of affairs'.
Wexford Labour Councillor George Lawlor said the new €2,500 allowance for personal security is not where we should be heading.
It comes following a number of security and safety incidents experienced by Councillors, and the recent introduction of a similar allowance scheme for Oireachtas members.
Councillors will be able to claim up to 50% of their personal security costs to a maximum value of €2,500, whichever is the lesser amount.
These could include the installation of intruder alarms, CCTV and the provision of panic buttons.
Cllr Lawlor told Lunchtime Live he is worried about going in this direction.
"Haven't we come to a sad state of affairs when people who put themselves to serve in the public interest have to seek protection for their family homes?" he said.
"I think the notion that local councillors, who interact so closely with local communities across the country, have to resort to providing CCTV or panic alarms for themselves and their families is a really sad turn of events."
'Threatening my daughters'
Cllr Lawlor said he himself has been subject to "the almost usual" level of abuse.
"Particularly via social media though the anonymous trolls who seem so troubled that they need to threaten people and undermine their existence within the community as a public rep," he said.
"I was in bed one night... and there was a couple of missed calls on my phone.
"As I was checking the number, a Facebook message came through threatening my daughters, one of my daughters in particular, that they were going to exact extreme violence on them.
"The Gardaí in Wexford were extremely helpful; and we tracked down the perpetrator.
"No action was taken on my instruction because we felt that it was someone who was a little bit troubled themselves."
'Frightening'
Cllr Lawlor said he does not want to claim this allowance.
"It's frightening and it's discouraging when you're trying to do your best, be it you make good or bad decisions," he said.
"That's the nature of politics, and they have an impact on people, but it's quite frightening at the time and that was certainly the case in my instance.
"The vast majority of people that... public reps would interact with support us, they may not always agree with us, but they would certainly support us on our endeavours to do the best we can for our communities.
"So, the notion that we would have to resort to some security measures I think is setting the bar at a new level that I don't believe we should be heading in."
'Zero-tolerance policy'
Cllr Lawlor said he believes a better approach would be a zero-tolerance policy from authorities and social media companies.
"It is all too common and it's all too cowardly by those, in many instances, who hide behind an anonymous wall on social media," he said.
"I think the onus is on companies such as X, or Facebook or Instagram or any of those to ensure people who are using their service are respectful and certainly not threatening in any way to anybody," he added.
