Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I have two questions. We had representatives of the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, ODCE, in with us last week. They painted a picture of what they face, particularly in respect of resources. It is clear from what they were saying that a certain amount of white-collar crime is going undetected because the resources are simply not available to deal with it. That is just a fact. I am aware that the staff do a very good job prioritising but they just do not have all the resources they need. Do the Minister and Minister of State have a view on the level of white-collar crime that is going undetected and on how it will be tackled when this legislation is passed?

The ODCE painted a picture of the people they are dealing with. They are well resourced and have deep pockets, and they are also litigious. It seems like it is quite a combative environment for the office. Resources will be key. The representatives before us were looking for staff. They outlined they would need new staff. HR staff and other such staff are a given but it is more a question of staff at the technical end and on the front line. I am interested in hearing whether the Minister and Minister of State accept that there is white-collar crime not being investigated. Have they a view on staffing?

I have another question but want to leave as much time as I can for answers. The question relates to the additional powers that the ODCE representatives referred to in their submission and in the course of our discussions. They referred to the need to legislate and to modernise and update the search powers, specifically regarding the cloud, for example. I will not get too technical because I am not technical, but it is clear that data that used to be in one place now move around. The view was that additional powers would be needed. Do the Minister and Minister of State have a view on the powers of the Criminal Assets Bureau and Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC? Are they in the frame of mind to believe that the new agency will need such powers? Would they be minded to grant those kinds of powers to the agency to ensure it can do the best job it can?

I have taken only two and a half of my seven minutes. The remainder is for answers.