Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

Fianna Fáil welcomes the fact that the Government has prioritised the Criminal Justice Bill 2011, particularly given the amount of work done by the previous Minister, Dermot Ahern, and I want to acknowledge that in the House today. I want to acknowledge the Minister's own efforts in ensuring early publication of the Bill in the lifetime of the new Dáil and the future plans in this area which he outlined. We will support the Bill. We may submit amendments and I want to acknowledge that since his appointment, the Minister has been very co-operative with this party and others.

The Minister is correct to state the damage caused by white collar crime is immense. Over the years, there has been a tendency to judge it differently from other crimes, but we see the damage caused in this country in recent years by difficulties in this area. The characteristics of white collar crime include deceit, the violation of trust and, above all, a pursuit through dishonest means of personal or business advantage.

Let us be very clear that white collar crime is every bit as much a crime as any other and those who engage in it deserve that the full force of the law be applied. The Bill considerably strengthens the armoury of the State with regard to this. However, we must be realistic, and in considering this issue I cannot but refer to the remarks of Mr. Justice Peter Kelly in connection with the pace of the ongoing investigations by various organisations in the country. Mr. Justice Kelly commented, "An apparent failure to investigate thoroughly yet efficiently and expeditiously possible criminal wrongdoing in the commercial/corporate sectors does nothing to instil confidence in the criminal justice system." This is a damning indictment on many people, not only in this House. It is fair to state we have produced much legislation but Mr. Justice Kelly is putting it up to us to ensure that legislation is properly implemented.

Mr. Justice Kelly also highlighted comments made by another senior Commercial Court judge, Mr. Justice Frank Clarke, in a judgment delivered in April in a case where full admissions were made about engaging in practices which were unlawful under many headings. Mr. Justice Clarke was made to comment that no further action had been seen to be taken in that instance either.

In his concluding remarks, the Minister referred to the concerns of the general public about the slowness of these investigations. In the context of us strengthening the powers available to those who investigate these crimes, we must also challenge them to use the powers they already have more efficiently and to be conscious of the great expectation of the people of the country, looking for answers to so many issues that have happened in recent years, that is on the shoulders of these investigators.

The comments quoted were not made by politicians courting publicity or votes but by the judges of this State who we have entrusted with deciding on the laws enacted by the Oireachtas. It is time those in charge of pursuing those cases get their act together and brought them to a satisfactory conclusion. I welcome the fact Mr. Justice Peter Kelly has put that challenge to them.

The notion of national recovery cannot be limited to a financial one. The national recovery of self-confidence is as important and it will depend on successful outcomes under the various headings of this Bill. In this regard I welcome the fact the Minister has gone out of his way to emphasise that provisions in this Bill can be used in current investigations. That is why there is an urgency to progress the Bill through the House as quickly as possible.

I would like to ensure that before we complete the debate in both Houses, the Bill is as legally robust as possible in light of the resources available to those who may challenge it. It is also important to ensure the Bill is accompanied by sufficient resources in order to tackle the authorities and to retrain their staff to use new powers being made available to them. I refer in particular to the powers being made available in information technology.

The legislation is a culmination of efforts undertaken by the previous Minister, Dermot Ahern. This time last year the former Minister formally requested the Garda Commissioner to bring forward proposals for change in the criminal law in this area. Last October, he launched the public consultation document referred to by the Minister, Organised and White Collar Crime, and in December, he announced approval for the drafting of this Bill. Following this, at the beginning of the last Dáil session, Fianna Fáil made it clear it would prioritise the publication and enactment a Bill and on 1 February, we announced that we had approved the text of such a Bill. However, it could not be published following the dissolution of the Dáil.

The Minister outlined the key provisions. The detention for questioning provisions ensure changes to the existing law. The provision whereby a person may be detained for questioning by the Garda for a specified period will be amended to allow the period of detention to be broken into segments and the person released in the intervening periods. The Garda will be able to detain and question an individual for part of the period, release that person while it makes further inquiries into what was said and then require the individual to return to the Garda station at a later stage for the continuation of the detention. This is necessary given the extent and depth of data.

The complex nature of recent investigations has shown that it is not always possible to complete questioning and check facts in one period of detention. The provision applies to this Bill only and it is welcome. The Minister is committed to publishing detailed regulations in this regard and I ask that they are published on Committee Stage or Report Stage to ensure we have a comprehensive debate on them and their potential impact on citizens of this State.

The requirement to make a statement provision is also welcome. In order to delay, or for other reasons, there has been a reluctance on the part of potential witnesses to make statements to assist the Garda in current and previous investigations. The Bill provides a mechanism whereby an obligation can be imposed on witnesses as well as companies to provide information, answer questions and make statements in regard to investigations into relevant offences.

The Bill provides for applications to the District Court by the Garda for orders requiring the production of material or the provision of information by answering questions or making a statement containing the information for the purposes of the investigation of a relevant offence. The fact that this has been reduced to the District Court is welcome and should expedite the process. A person who fails to comply with the order will be guilty of an offence and provision is also being made for the offence of providing false or misleading information or statements. This is a particularly welcome provision given the danger that false or misleading can be provided in order to delay an investigation.

Recent and ongoing investigations have seen large numbers of documents being provided to the Garda without any effort to index material or to certify the material in a manner that would allow its admissibility in court as evidence without the need for witnesses to prove them. The sheer volume and complex nature of documentation has been a source of much delay. Section 15 provides that where the District Court orders the production of material under that section it may order the person to identify and categorise the material in a particular manner. It is assumed that regulations will be published in this regard. If the Minister could publish them on Committee Stage or Report Stage it would make for easier passage of the Bill and for a more informed discussion.

This Bill specifically examines the issue of withholding information and it provides for a new offence similar to the former misprision of felony offence which relates to the failure to report information to the Garda. A person who has information which he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance in preventing the commission by another person of a relevant offence or in securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of another person for such an offence and who fails without reasonable excuse to disclose such information as soon as practicable to the Garda will be guilty of an offence.

However, we should use this debate to reiterate the fact that we should not necessarily need the threat of an offence or a fine or imprisonment. People who have information which may assist an investigation should come forward immediately. Everybody shares the frustrations in regard to the delays and if people have information which may assist investigations, they should come forward.

The Minister outlined changes to the period of questioning, in particular between the hours of midnight and 8 a.m. He also committed to introducing regulations in this area. I reiterate my remarks on the need to publish those regulations on Committee Stage.

The Bill provides that no questioning of a detained person may take place until he or she has had access to legal advice. This is subject to two exceptions, namely, where he or she has waived the right to consult or the garda in charge has authorised questioning on the grounds that to delay would involve a risk of injury to an other persons, serious damage to property or loss of or interference with evidence, accomplices evading, etc. Member of the Garda Síochána have always adopted this approach in an informal manner and they should be praised for doing so. However, it is now necessary in this litigious environment to place this on a legal footing. Again, I hope the regulations in this area will not be framed in such a way as to choke the ability of the Garda to source information or to manage its affairs in a way which has been successful to date. I hope the Minister will consult the Garda in regard to this area.

The Bill also provides for the detention clock to stop, subject to a maximum period, pending a solicitor making himself or herself available for a consultation. I hope that maximum period will not be too generous because it is not unknown for people to delay their arrival at a Garda station in order to prevent questioning or prevent an investigation.

We welcome the fact the Minister has introduced the Bill quickly. However, in his response to this debate I would like him to comment on the remarks made by Mr. Justice Peter Kelly in regard to the Anglo Irish Bank investigation. When the Minister was on this side of the House he was justifiably critical of the slow pace of that investigation. It has not quickened as a result of his move to the other side of the House.

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