Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)

I read recently that a Latvian NGO that offers support to victims of human trafficking claims there has seen an avalanche of sham marriages during the past year. It also claims that Ireland and Cyprus are the two countries where Latvian sham marriages are most common. I am fully aware this is not an easy problem with which to deal given the State must meet its responsibilities under EU law to guarantee free movement to the spouses of EU citizens and is also prevented from undertaking systematic checks of particular nationalities.

The reality is that the EU directive on free movement is being exploited. Since the directive became law in 2006 the number of people in Ireland applying for residency rights, based on marriage to an EU citizen, has increased from 1,206 in 2006 to 2,129 in 2009. Every effort must be made to try to prevent these sham marriages taking place. It will take an EU-wide approach to achieve this. My colleague, Deputy Naughten, has sought to have the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 amended to give registrars more power to interview prospective brides and grooms and to block any marriages they deem to be shams. This is a reasonable amendment which should be made immediately. The law needs to be changed to give registrars, the people performing these ceremonies, the powers to block until they are satisfied, through various checks, that a genuine marriage is taking place.

Many developed countries have introduced tough laws making it a criminal offence to enter into a sham marriage in order to circumvent immigration laws. In this regard, the US law imposes a prison sentence of up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000. I will give an example of the tragedy of these marriages. An article I read in relation to the Shelter Safe House, an NGO looking after Latvian women following their return to Latvia, gave an example of an 18 year old woman who was promised a job in a shop in Ireland by a friend living in Ireland who had an Indian boyfriend. When she arrived in Dublin she was allowed to stay in their house but no job materialised. After some time, her friend's boyfriend told her she had to marry his friend to pay him back for board and lodgings. She was put under a lot of pressure and because she had no one to turn to in a foreign country she agreed. She has since returned to Latvia where she has found a boyfriend she loves and is pregnant.

She wants to marry him but cannot do so because she is already married. This girl is 18 years old and she was conned into a marriage here. I am ashamed that this type of thing is happening in Ireland, particularly in respect of people of certain nationalities.

As stated previously, an EU-wide approach is required to deal with this extremely serious problem. I ask the Minister to ensure the matter is raised at the next EU Council of Ministers with a view to achieving a common approach. If such an approach is not taken, the institution of marriage, which is protected under the Constitution, will be seriously undermined.

The Latvian authorities recently suggested that Ireland has been dragging its feet and has ignored calls to deal with the abuse, through marriages of the kind to which I refer, of Latvian citizens living here. That is a serious allegation which could have major consequences on our international reputation. It is incomprehensible that a request from any county to eradicate the practice of sham marriages would be ignored. It is essential that this allegation be investigated fully and that the exact nature of what occurred be determined.

Ireland prides itself on being an equitable nation. Any suggestion that sham marriages were either not taken seriously or, worse still, ignored would paint us in a damagingly negative light on the world stage. The exploitation by one person of another should never be tolerated in a civilised society. If the Latvian authorities claim their requests to have the abuse of their citizens in Ireland stamped out were ignored, we must discover why.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for allowing me to raise this matter and I sincerely hope the Minister will take on board the serious nature of it.

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