Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome that this debate has at last come to the floor of the Dáil and I commend my colleague, Deputy Breathnach. While we will not oppose the Bill's passage on Second Stage, there are legitimate concerns about the criminalisation of the end user, just as there have been regarding those found in possession of illegal drugs for personal use. The real criminals here are those who manufacture, distribute and supply these illicit goods. I urge Government to join Opposition Members in seriously addressing the black economy and those who profit from it by allowing this Bill to be passed to Committee Stage.

I will now speak specifically about the illicit tobacco trade. We all know the serious threat that the use of tobacco products presents for the health of users and those exposed to this habit. We also know it is a fact that some 5,200 deaths per year in this State directly relate to cigarette smoking. Tobacco smoking-related health issues cost the public health budget an estimated €1 billion plus annually. A series of measures designed to encourage current users to quit the habit, discourage tobacco smoking and discourage young people from taking up smoking have a worthwhile impact, but they are undermined by the expanding market in contraband cigarettes. Smuggling gangs trade in products that cause serious health concerns and certain early death for thousands annually. They also undermine legislators' efforts to curtail cigarette smoking by offering these killer products at a significantly lower price than the legally marketed products sold through recognised retail outlets. Smuggling gangs cost the Exchequer an estimated €210 million annually, contributing negatively to our collective capacity to see the return and development of our public services including our acute hospital and community-based healthcare services.

I acknowledge the efforts to date of the Revenue Commissioners, An Garda Síochána and others seeking to confront and eliminate this illicit trade. In our further consideration of this Bill, therefore, I urge Government and all parties to give the lead in a European Union-sponsored clampdown on this nefarious trade. It will not be done on the island of Ireland alone. I urge Government to note that this clampdown must include an investigation of the potential involvement of legitimate cigarette manufacturers in facilitating this illegal smuggling business. If links are established, the most serious penalties must be applied and enforced in each affected jurisdiction. It must also introduce further legislation to bring in heavy fines on conviction arising from involvement in cigarette smuggling into this State, including involvement in any role with these criminal gangs; promote and secure co-operation between the relevant customs and excise and police services across the suspected supply lines; target where possible those who are the primary beneficiaries; and act with real purpose and immediacy on what I believe is the clear wish of all legislators in this House, namely, to stamp out the activities of these traders in death and contribute positively to our ongoing and shared efforts to make Ireland a tobacco-free society.

This Bill deserves further and careful consideration. I am not yet convinced that its primary proposal to target the purchaser of these illicit products is the course to take, but I have an open mind and I am willing to be convinced of the legitimacy of this course of action. I fully support its targeted intent of seriously curtailing and, better still, eliminating these illegal businesses and, in the case of illicit tobacco, significantly reducing the overall adverse impact that tobacco products have on the health of the nation. I encourage the Minister of State, Deputy D'Arcy, and Government to support the passage of this Bill to Committee Stage, where further careful consideration might help ensure we have a Bill that we can all support and that will deliver on the clear intent of its author and those of us who support the core proposition and thoughts behind it.

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