Michael Conaghan (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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I wish to make two brief observations. In making a rough analysis I tend to divide this activity into two broad categories. I refer to the nixer culture which flourishes in times of high unemployment. During the recent construction boom the legitimate industry offered very high rewards in the carpentry and plumbing trades, for example, and people were in a position to pay for these services. There was a dramatic decline in the level of activity referred to, in Dublin in particular. The other category is the cross-Border phenomenon of trading in goods which had its origins in the smuggling of tea, butter and cattle, but now the trade is in diesel and cigarettes. This activity started in Border areas and is controlled by the paramilitaries and their hangers-on and also criminal types. We need to be aware of the two dynamics at work in these two categories in order that we can tackle them. Two approaches are needed, as they are both equally harmful to legitimate trade.