Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

Investigations are still ongoing on this matter, albeit in other jurisdictions, and the Minister is still restricted as to what he can say about this particular case. On top of that, the Minister firmly holds the view that he should not openly disclose the intelligence that may or may not be available to members of An Garda Síochána at any particular time, or what action is taken on foot of that intelligence. In the circumstances, it is not possible to go into specific operational details of the kind sought by the Deputy.

What is a matter of public record is that the joint task force of An Garda Síochána, the Customs Service, and the Naval Service worked extremely well together in the investigation that followed the seizure in Dunlough Bay and this resulted in four successful convictions in Ireland.

The Minister would like once again to commend the work of the joint task force last week in Operation Seabight. This operation involving An Garda Síochána, the Customs Service and the Naval Service, working closely with our international partners in the UK's Serious Organised Crime Agency and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (Narcotics) in Lisbon, is an example of what can be achieved when we collaborate and work together for the common good. The Minister is grateful for the strong support for the operation in this house.

The subject of this Adjournment matter specifically relates to the interdiction of drugs at sea, but we should not overlook the fact that when drugs find their way into the country considerable efforts are made by An Garda Síochána to track these down and seize them. In 2007, the total amount of drugs seized had an estimated street value of €155 million. As of 11 November, this year's seizures have already amounted to €203 million. Of necessity, figures for 2008 are provisional. While some would argue that this means there are more and more drugs coming into Ireland, it could also be that our law enforcement agencies are obtaining better intelligence and are getting better at detections and seizures.

The Minister has been advised by the Garda authorities that in addition to the considerable volumes of drugs which continue to be seized, of which last week's huge cocaine haul is further evidence, significant impact has been made in 2008 by arresting and prosecuting a number of major players involved in drug trafficking through the importation, sale and distribution of drugs.

Obviously there is little room for complacency and this work is ongoing. To further assist in our law enforcement efforts against drug trafficking, a number of new initiatives have been introduced. Some examples of these include the establishment in January 2008 of the Garda organised crime unit on a permanent footing, which now has a full-time staff of 70 officers; the provisions introduced in the Criminal Justice Acts 2006 and 2007, which have provided further measures to enhance the powers of the Garda Síochána in the investigation and prosecution of drug offences; the ring-fencing of €21 million in the 2009 Estimates to enable Operation Anvil to continue with targeted disruption of serious and organised criminal activity throughout the country——

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