Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)

That is the de facto position. This means that in excess of 33,000 people working in the security industry in Ireland have been vetted by An Garda Síochána on behalf of the authority. In addition, applicants who have resided outside of Ireland for a period of six months or more are required to provide the authority with a criminal record certificate from that jurisdiction. All Garda vetting results and foreign criminal record certificates are assessed against the authority's guidelines on criminality and applications are refused where convictions are deemed relevant, in accordance with the guidelines. While it is inevitable in any such procedures that the issue of dealing with such applications from persons who resided outside the jurisdiction is more complex, the criminal record checking process and criminality guidelines are constantly monitored and validated to ensure the effectiveness of these systems.

The Private Security Authority has also informed the Minister that before issuing a licence the authority will consider whether a contractor or individual is of sufficient standard to be deemed fit and proper to work within the security industry. In the case of contractors, this requires compliance with both management and operational standards, compliance with criminal records checking and compliance with tax and other regulatory requirements. The authority will also look at the previous business history of the applicant with particular emphasis on compliance with statutory responsibilities. In the case of individuals, applicants must obtain a relevant qualification and comply with criminal records checking. To date the authority has issued 22,037 individual licences. The remainder have either been refused, withdrawn or are still being processed.

The Minister understands that the licensing regime is supported by a resolute enforcement strategy undertaken by the authority's dedicated enforcement team. The authority is very proactive in its enforcement policy and targets those who are unlicensed and those who hire or employ unlicensed contractors or individuals. The monitoring of licensees is also important to ensure that they continue to operate within the remit of their licence. The enforcement team works in close co-operation with other State agencies and undertakes inspections at locations throughout the country including at night and on weekends. To date the authority has brought successful criminal prosecutions against 21 unlicensed operators while more than 600 consumers of security services have terminated contracts with unlicensed providers.

The Minister is glad to have had this opportunity to apprise the House of the excellent work undertaken by the Private Security Authority since its establishment. When one considers the environment which existed prior to regulation against that which exists today it is evident that the security industry in Ireland has benefited greatly from the establishment of the authority. The transformation which regulation has brought about has been remarkable and has had many positive benefits for the industry, the wider business community and the public. The introduction of a standard based licensing system has improved the service provided by contractors, removed unscrupulous security providers from the industry and restored public confidence in a multi-billion euro business.

The introduction of regulation in a previously unregulated industry will always present challenges for both the regulator and the industry. The Private Security Authority is committed to consulting with all stakeholders and considers the opinions of those in the industry in its business planning. Both contractors and employees are represented on the board of the authority along with other stakeholders. The Minister is informed that the workings of the authority are under constant review and improvements to the licensing process are undertaken when required. The authority is currently engaged in reviews in the areas of the cost of regulation, upgrades of existing standards and simplification of the renewal process for individuals.

The licensing of the security industry is a significant body of work which is delivering a professional security service supported by standards and qualifications. The Minister is assured that the authority's licensing process is robust and that the public can be assured that only those who meet the authority's criminality guidelines are licensed. The improvement in the industry brought about by the establishment of the authority should be commended.

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