Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

I wish to share time with Deputy O'Brien. Unlike the previous legislation we discussed, I argued for this legislation while in Opposition and I am pleased to support it in Government. It is a modicum of progress in the right direction. I wish to dwell on protection for those who are trafficked, on which Deputy Coveney touched. It is crucial that while we deal with the criminal justice aspects of trafficking, we put in place support mechanisms for those who are brought to this country against their will. It is important to realise that these people are vulnerable in terms of language skills and legal status. Often their accommodation is substandard and they are worried about landlord issues. Particularly in the case of those who have been trafficked for sexual purposes there is a dependency on a criminal underworld. These people are vulnerable and one of the most significant issues in their minds is that they may be deported at a moment's notice. We must examine how we can provide greater support for those who have been exploited.

This theme runs through this kind of legislation for the past 100 years. The legislation on prostitution is often unfairly used to target the provider rather than the user of such services. We must examine how to better protect the provider and in this case the trafficked, rather than concentrate all our resources on criminalising the trafficked. I am not convinced we have dealt adequately with this. Young female drug users still sell their bodies on the streets of Dublin to support a drug habit and we do not have enough joined up thinking between the Garda, the HSE and voluntary support agencies. We do not have enough support services to prevent this from happening. This also applies to underpaid and exploited workers. I think of the plight of the Turkish workers who came to Ireland, whose case former Deputy Joe Higgins raised in the previous Dáil.

Exploitation and trafficking, as defined in the legislation, still occur. We must get the support structures right for those who are vulnerable. I am not convinced we have enough training in the three bodies that deal with those who are trafficked, the Garda, the DPP and the courts, for these people to deal with the trafficked. We must examine this issue in detail. The comment in the explanatory memorandum that "there will be no direct cost implications to enacting and implementing the proposed criminal offences" worries me. That is fair enough if it allows for the resources to be allocated correctly, however with any new legislation there is a learning curve and a need to ensure that those implementing the law are adequately trained in its legal complexities and the difficult support structures required for those who have been trafficked.

The Bill deals with all aspects of trafficking, including trafficking for organ harvesting. This is an almost unthinkable issue, but it happens, if not in Ireland. We have heard stories from members of Falun Gong who are concerned about organ harvesting in China and enormous human rights abuses there. Once enacted I hope we can use this legislation to send a strong signal through our foreign policy that we do not want to stand idly by while other vulnerable people are abused in the most horrific means possible in other jurisdictions. It is important to say that.

I am pleased with section 6 of the Bill, which refers to offences by bodies corporate. Often in Ireland the best way to tackle criminal law abuse is to follow the money. If we can follow the trail of landlords or companies to target the individuals and the bodies corporate behind the abuse, that will help.

I welcome the legislation. I noted Deputy Coveney's mention of temporary residency for those who have been trafficked. That issue must be teased out in detail. I worry that because much of what happens in this area is underground and invisible, this legislation may deal only with the criminal law aspects of trafficking and not put in place mechanisms to deal with those who have been trafficked. This exists in other legislation before the House. I would hate to think we would deal with the criminal law aspects in isolation and not concentrate resources on the administrative protection and provision of services that will be dealt with in the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill.

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