Gerard Murphy (Cork North West, Fine Gael)

As my colleague Deputy Jim O'Keeffe stated, the Fine Gael Party is always happy to support the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform in introducing legislation that will improve crime detection rates in this country. International and trans-European crime is a serious and increasing problem in Ireland and we have not come to terms with organised crime emanating from gangs in eastern Europe. The latest proposed expansion of the EU to take in Romania and Bulgaria and the freedom of movement involved will add to this problem, to an extent, and there are serious reservations regarding the extent of organised crime in these countries.

We must be concerned by the level of home-grown organised crime and the level of activity in other European countries, particularly Holland and Spain. We support the Minister in introducing legislation to curb crime but legislation alone will not solve our crime problems. If this were the case Ireland would be a crime free society by this stage as the Minister has spent so much time and energy putting legislation through the Dáil. However, without the proper resources legislation cannot succeed and this has been the source of some of our problems recently.

Resources must be provided to the Garda in the short term and in the long term the underlying causes of crime must be addressed. This is unlikely to happen under the current Government as the gap between the rich and poor continues to grow. Resources in education, the most important tool in fighting social injustice, are not being provided in the way necessary to facilitate an atmosphere in communities that would lead to a reduction in crime rates.

The Minister has introduced a raft of legislation but we have yet to see the type of resources provided to the Garda that would make it as successful as it could be. The Minister's handling of various issues, specifically the introduction of the Garda reserve force, has eroded Garda confidence in the administration of law and caused problems in the police structure.

The Fine Gael Party has long argued that community policing is essential. Unless crime is tackled at source by providing social solutions to community problems and preventing crime through community policing, we will not make substantial gains in fighting crime.

International crime fighting is different and our efforts in this area will depend to a large extent on how well the national police force is resourced. The Garda Síochána will require a range of resources if it is to participate adequately in international policing. To communicate properly with Interpol and make best use of the enhanced co-operation proposed in the Bill, the force must be given additional resources, including new technologies and staff with language and technical skills.

If the concept of the European co-operation is to be successful and the activities of the Garda are to be integrated with Interpol, substantial resources and imagination will be necessary. Most European police forces have been fighting organised crime for many years and have acquired experience, structures and state-of-the-art equipment to deal with the type of criminal involved in it. This type of crime is relatively new here because the Garda has only dealt with the international dimension of crime for the past decade. If the section of the Garda dealing with international crime is as badly resourced as the general force, we still have a great deal of ground to make up.

While I appreciate that the Garda, in co-operation with other European forces, recently achieved some notable successes, particularly in the area of drug seizures, organised crime is extremely sophisticated. International criminals employ the latest technology and have access to people with language skills and vast experience in international business and banking transactions. By matching the resources and personnel available to organised crime, many European police forces have become more effective in tackling this type of crime.

Until recently, the Garda Síochána did not require the specialised resources needed to fight organised crime because of our island status. To ensure the force will be able to maintain good, high level contacts with its European counterparts, it must be provided with sufficient funding to procure state-of-the-art technology and employ personnel with language and technical skills or experience in banking and international business. Judging by the Government's track record, it will be many years before these resources are made available. The Minister must recognise that, given Ireland's geographical position and relative lack of experience in fighting organised crime when compared to countries such as Italy or Bulgaria, he must immediately make significant resources available to the Garda. I welcome the decision by the Garda Commissioner and Minister to establish a specialised unit to deal with organised crime and liaise and co-operate with Interpol. This new departure for the Garda Síochána will require substantial investment in training.

The European Union has never been so vulnerable to criminal elements who will use freedom of movement to maximise their ill-gotten gains in the trafficking of drugs, guns and human beings. Europe's close proximity to Russia and Africa also gives easier access to criminal elements from these regions. Given that the problem of international crime extends far beyond Europe, the Government must provide resources to adequately deal with the problem.

The purpose of the Bill is to give effect in Irish law to three protocols to the Europol Convention 1995, namely, the protocols of 30 November 2000, 28 November 2002 and 27 November 2003. The first of these extends the competence of Europol to money laundering regardless of the origins of the laundered proceeds. The second clarifies certain powers regarding participation in joint investigation teams by members of Europol and the privileges and immunity applying to members of Europol, while the third streamlines the internal working of Europol, particularly in liaison procedures and the analysis and processing of data.

Europol supports law enforcement activities of members states, primarily those directed at illicit drug trafficking; illegal immigration networks; terrorism; forgery of money, including counterfeiting of the euro and other means of payment; trafficking in human beings; child pornography; illicit vehicle trafficking; and money laundering. Its other main priorities include crimes against persons, financial crimes and cyber-crime where an organised criminal structure is involved in two or more member states.

I do not propose to address in detail the other provisions of the Bill as the Minister covered them adequately. The Europol (Amendment) Bill 2006 will amend the Europol Act 1997, which was introduced to enable Ireland to ratify the 1995 Europol convention and additional protocols of 24 July 1996 and 19 June 1997. The amendment provided for in the Bill will enable Ireland to ratify three additional protocols of 30 November 2000, 28 November 2002 and 27 November 2003. The protocols provide for, respectively, the extension of the competence of Europol to money laundering regardless of the origins of the proceeds, clarification on participation in joint investigation teams by members of Europol and the privileges and immunities applying to members of Europol, and streamlining the internal workings of Europol, particularly on data protection.

Since the failure of negotiations on the draft European constitution, the European Commission has been examining various approaches to harmonising laws in member states with a view to transferring to the Commission and Parliament powers currently vested in the Council of Ministers. There is no doubt that difference in member states' judicial systems hinder the effective implementation of law and the fight against crime. The Fine Gael Party supports the Minister's position that no further justice powers should be transferred to the Commission and Parliament until such time as a comprehensive constitution for Europe has been agreed.

Appearing before the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights yesterday, the Minister admitted that bilateral co-operation between Ireland and many of our neighbours and potential new neighbours is not as good as it should be. In many instances it is questionable if there is any contact at all between the Garda and some of these police forces.

Bearing this in mind, there must be a change in the mindset that exists within the Garda Síochána. It must realise the implications for the future of trans-European and international crime and must set up systems to allow contact with police forces in every country where the potential for the spreading of organised crime into or out of Ireland exists. If our gang leaders are becoming richer as a result of involvement in organised crime in Europe, they will continue to cause major problems in this country. I urge the Minister to recognise that the gardaí are moving into a new area and that it will be difficult for them to deal with other languages and legal systems. A huge number of new personnel with specialised knowledge in languages, law and business systems in other European countries will be needed if this system is to be effective.

Having said that, we will continue to support any measures the Minister introduces to honour our commitments at European level or any laws that will facilitate the enforcement of the law in this country.

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