Minister for Children and Youth Affairs James Reilly was forced to abandon his ministerial car after it was surrounded by protesters.

Mr Reilly was given a Garda escort out of Bluebell in Dublin when he was advised that returning to his car might provoke a serious incident.

His privately-owned car was blocked in by protesters who threw stones and eggs at it. It is now in Kilmainham Garda station for forensic examination and is reported to have been damaged.

Mr Reilly was at the launch of the National Youth Strategy 2015-2020 in the Bluebell Youth and Community Project on Thursday afternoon.

After he arrived, his ministerial car was surrounded by young protesters and the gardaí were called.

“It was clear pretty quickly that this was going to be an incident,” one eyewitness said.

“There was disbelief when the protesters found that the minister had gone, but they did not dissipate.”

The Public Order Unit was called and a standoff ensued between gardaí and protesters which lasted until 9pm on Thursday night.

Photographs have emerged of both the ministerial car and Garda cars being pelted with eggs.

A spokesman for the Minister said that he had taken a Garda escort “in the interests of public safety. On the advice of An Garda Síochana, the minister did not return to his car which might have provoked a more serious incident.The minister was driven away from the event.”

A Garda spokesman confirmed that an incident took place. A spokesman said: “We are investigating and incident of public order in Bluebell yesterday afternoon. There were no arrests or injuries reported.”

It is unclear if the protests were organised in advance or spontaneous, but the Republican organisation Éirígí posted on its Facebook page: "Yesterday saw Bluebell residents spontaneously and peacefully protest against the presence of Twenty-Six County Minister James Riley in their community. Reilly's Garda minders responded to this modest act of opposition with their usual provocation, heavy-handedness and thuggery.

“The contrast between the wealth of James Riley and the average family in Bluebell could hardly be greater. What right does this multi-millionaire, austerity-implementing minister have to cynically use an austerity-ravaged community as a backdrop for a cheap photo-opportunity?

“What right does James Reilly have to use the poor to boost his media profile, his chances of re-election and his future income?

"Injustice breeds frustration and anger. And in the Ireland of 2015 there is plenty of injustice."

The incident in Bluebell was similar to one at Jobstown last year when An Tánaiste Joan Burton’s car was surrounded for several hours by water protesters