Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

It is extremely important that this issue be re-examined. Gardaí are expending great time and effort in pursuing people for not paying fines. The Minister said last week that a person in receipt only of social welfare has just enough to live on, but the reality is that such people are being pursued in any case and are being imprisoned. If they are found to have received social welfare payments fraudulently they will have to repay €25 or €30 per week, so there is no reason they cannot repay a fine. It is about the principle of seeking to minimise costs and secure best value for money for the State. This issue cannot be isolated from Government.

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