Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Garda is heavily involved with Interpol and Europol in information exchange. Following the Paris attacks on the Friday, I was briefed on the Saturday by the national response unit which was dealing with the information that was coming through. It was already in contact with Interpol and Europol. Interpol had asked for information from Ireland but no specific information emerged on a threat to Ireland or any person here who had been involved in the Paris attacks. The Garda was immediately alerted to this and involved.

The Deputy is correct that enhancing the capacity for developing good intelligence and intelligence-sharing internationally is increasingly important. There is definitely room for greater co-operation in that regard. At the last Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting the point was made that it was extremely important to have a database of radicalised individuals who were returning to Europe from the Middle East and to ensure the authorities were aware of those who presented a danger to European societies. A further point, one that is continually made by international police forces, is that quite a number of terrorist attacks have been prevented because of good intelligence sharing. That is obviously the position we want to reach to prevent attacks, as opposed to dealing with the tragic aftermath of such attacks, as we saw in Paris recently.

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