Mr. Diarmuid Cronin:

I have done quite a lot of work on it since 2011. I looked at the various markings. A common denominator of all forensic markings is that they need ultraviolet light to be seen. They come in many different shapes and forms but ultraviolet light is the common denominator. It is needed for the search parties that go out to search a criminal's property and in the district offices where a criminal is being proceeded, to see the markings if they are present. At the time there were a number of companies - the major players were SelectedDNA and SmartWater. However, none of the companies could get a major contract that would allow them to really develop the sales of their product in the country.

Copper cable is used by wind farms, telecoms companies and Iarnród Éireann and there could be major contracts with banks, credit unions, or any kind of a property on which an individual might carry out a raid. The Garda Síochána needs resources in order to have a system in its laboratory to read the markings. It is a game changer and is a major player in other jurisdictions. It is a crime preventative because if a property is marked, it creates a big reason not to raid it. I spoke about such a product at one of my community alert meetings and a person asked me where he could get it. I asked him what exactly he would be using it on and he said that he had a record collection of LPs, including some golden discs which were quite valuable, and he knew that if he marked his records that no matter where in the world they were distributed, whether the USA, UK or Europe, they could be traced back to him.

The Garda Síochána recovers an immense amount of property every year which has to be auctioned because nobody can claim it and the Garda cannot determine who is the owner. This is a crying shame. My predecessor in community alert was a retired garda sergeant called Pat O'Leary. He advocated that people stamp numbers, such as their telephone number, onto their property. Perhaps something like Eircode could be stamped. It is very difficult to etch or stamp but it is simple to use the equivalent of nail varnish and just mark little dabs here and there and have it traced internationally back to one's home and property.