Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

When the Garda Commissioner came before the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality he highlighted the illicit tobacco trade and fuel laundering as the two biggest funders of criminal gangs in the country. The more we increase the price of cigarettes the more we drive certain people towards buying illicit cigarettes. As Deputy Kelleher stated it is not like one must go looking for them. One can buy them on Grafton St. In the pubs in my area they are advertised with telephone numbers one can call. No one seems to be tackling this issue.

Deputy Kelleher stated 29% of the population is still smoking. This figure seems static. Will the witnesses identify the percentage by which the number of smokers has reduced since the introduction of the smoking ban in the workplace? Has the number of smokers decreased since the removal of the box of ten cigarettes? Does the Department know the percentage of tobacco consumed through the illicit trade? We are all against smoking and we all acknowledge it is terribly bad for our health. The one benefit of legal tobacco sales is that the national school aged children mentioned by Deputy Byrne cannot go into their local shop and buy 20 cigarettes because they will not be sold to them, but they can get cigarettes through the illegal trade.

What percentage of the excise duty generated through the sale of tobacco is ring-fenced and given to the Department of Education and Skills to put in place a programme to educate young people on the dangers of taking up this filthy habit? There is an overemphasis by the Department on increasing the price and reducing the number of cigarettes which can be bought in a box. Now we are looking at reducing the size of a packet of rolled tobacco. At the same time the illicit trade is being ignored. Real jobs in the industry will be directly affected if the directive is implemented.