Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

There certainly is not a negative attitude as far as the Department is concerned. We sponsored the Bill to put in place the most modern legislative response and we now have to establish the structures. To be fair, there is a separate, dedicated unit in my Department which is fully staffed by very committed people. Information at my disposal from the Garda Síochána indicates that a sizeable proportion of those suspected of being subject to trafficking are trafficked for labour rather than sex purposes. That is not to say that sex trafficking is not going on. Ruhama has recently referred 13 people to the Garda Síochána, one of whom has been given a 60-day period. Three of them went home voluntarily and had airline tickets on them. At the end of the day, they are adults and cannot be detained against their will.

I totally disagree with the Deputy's point about people not being sympathetic. I know for a fact that the Garda Síochána conducts significant training to ensure that every garda is fully trained, particularly concerning the legislative requirements of the recent Act. That training is being carried out by the International Organisation for Migration.

Together with the Garda Commissioner, I recently launched the new blindfold awareness campaign. My Department has provided significant funding to Ruhama to allow it to run advertising in recent times. This area is evolving and we are learning from the experience. A number of cases were dealt with under the previous immigration legislation. Following the enactment of the new legislation in June, I recall the Garda Commissioner stating two or three months ago that the gardaí are investigating approximately 17 cases. Quite a number of those cases related to one instance in which people were suspected of being trafficked for labour purposes.

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