Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am not in a position to respond to allegations the Deputy has made against individual members of staff in NAMA. This is not the place for us to make allegations, nor can I respond to them not knowing whether they are true or untrue. The DPP acts independently of the Government and does not receive direction from it. The DPP's office does not account to the Government for its decisions. From experience and following cases down the years, I am aware that when the DPP decides not to prosecute, it generally does so because it does not believe there is sufficient evidence to pursue a case and secure a conviction. I cannot say in this individual case whether that is the position. I am not even sure I am allowed to ask.

On the broader picture of fighting corruption and white collar crime, the Government published a package of measures last year to crack down on such crime in Ireland. This was produced back in November. Since then, the Department of Justice and Equality has taken this forward through three major legislative initiatives.

The first is the Criminal Justice (Corruption Offences) Bill which has made significant progress through the House with Report Stage to take place on 1 and 2 May. It is then planned to bring all Stages through the Seanad and have it passed before the summer recess. The Bill includes legislative provisions for recommendations arising from the Mahon tribunal. It will substantially advance Ireland in meeting its obligations under several international anti-corruption instruments. The major modernisation of the corruption offences law will repeal and replace seven previous Prevention of Corruption Acts, some of them dating back to 1889. It will consolidate, update and strengthen seven Bills for modern times.

An amendment to the Bill was agreed by the Government yesterday which will ensure the full implementation of Article 7 of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, making it an offence to launder the proceeds of bribery outside Ireland involving a foreign public official, even if the bribery was not an offence in the place in which it was carried out. In addition to that, the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan, has brought forward the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill as part of the Government's package of measures.

I take the Deputy’s point in this regard that one can have all the legislation one likes, but if one does not enforce it, or have the power or strength to enforce it, then it counts for little. We indicated already, as part of our package of reforms, that we intend to strengthen, expand and beef up the role of the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement. It will be moved from being an office within the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation to a stand-alone bureau of investigation, a sort of Irish FBI, if one likes, when it comes to white-collar crime and corporate enforcement.

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