Eamonn Maloney (Dublin South West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We have had good contributions from Members. The one outstanding feature of this debate is that we are all at one in our concern about the communities ravaged by the misuse of drugs.

We, as parliamentarians, are also at one in expressing our solidarity for the work of the Criminal Assets Bureau, CAB. I cannot speak highly enough of CAB given the difficult work it has done over the past 19 years. It is up to us, as Members of this House, not only to offer solidarity in terms of praise for its work but also to ensure it has the necessary financial resources which may come to the Exchequer in a more limited period of time, based on the assumption there might be this change from seven to two years. From the contributions of all the Deputies, it is clear we want whatever assets are available to the Exchequer to be allocated to complement the work of CAB or to do the very valuable and essential work, as outlined by Deputy Broughan, in particular, that is carried out by task forces within the community.

I want to raise two other issues. I fully support, as I am sure do all Members, the necessary review of the legislation because it has been in force 19 years and the entire drug trade and the practices have changed utterly in that time. The classes of drugs that were available in the early 1990s are completely different from the substances that are now being used by people. That is why the review is so essential.

In addition, an important aspect that did not apply so much in the early 1990s was the nature of the personnel now involved in these drug gangs. Most of us could write down the principal people involved in the gangs from one end of this country to the other. They are not that numerous and most of us know who they are. The aim of those people is to make a great deal of money and, in the course of doing that, to make many communities miserable. If we can make their lives miserable and if this small Bill can, in any way, make their lives miserable and take as many of their assets acquired through criminal activity from them, we will have done a good day's work. That is the function of Deputies in this House.

The presence of paramilitaries among drug gangs has been widespread since the mid-1990s. Deputy Kelleher made a sharp contribution in that respect. They operate not only in this city but all over the country, including in the Border counties. They have their claws in the drug trade. People who were formerly what could be described as "freedom fighters" can now work full-time selling these substances, or protecting people who sell it. That is the reality. If we can, in any way, diminish their influence, that is what we should do.

I thank the Acting Chairman, the Minister of State and Deputies Broughan and Conaghan and others who made very good contributions. All of us look forward to the review and we will have additional opinions to express when it is completed.

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