James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the Deputies for their very constructive contributions to this very important debate and for the support they have shown for the Bill. I pay particular thanks to the Criminal Assets Bureau and the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and all State agencies that are involved in fighting money laundering and terrorist financing. They do a very difficult job very well in the face of very well resourced and well organised national and international criminals.

As I stated earlier, this is an important area of law. The reports arising from the FinCEN files in recent days demonstrate how important these measures against money laundering are. Ongoing development and improvement are necessary in this area. I echo Deputy Howlin's comments on this; the job will never be finished. As new ways of laundering money are found, we need to keep pace. Part of that is ensuring we incorporate European Union and FATF measures into domestic law, as we are doing here. Many aspects of the directive and this Bill reflect the supranational risk assessments done by the European Commission in recent years. This has particularly informed proposals relating to virtual assets and beneficial ownership matters.

Looking forward, the Commission has raised the possibility of moving from the directive-based regime to a more harmonised regulation-based one with direct effect. There will undoubtedly be challenges in achieving this across the disparate legal and regulatory structures across the Union. In the interim, there is a focus on administrative co-operation between regulatory bodies. The Bill includes several measures to facilitate this co-operation, notably in the amendments to sections 68A to 68D. Co-operation has also been enhanced by the regulations we adopted last year in SI 578/2019.

As I mentioned in my opening speech, Directive 2019/1153 further strengthens the framework by speeding up the access to information for law enforcement authorities and by enhancing the exchange of financial information between law enforcement authorities and financial intelligence units. This is due for transposition by August 2021.

Deputies Howlin and Conway-Walsh mentioned the financial sector. There is a strong focus on anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism issues from both the Central Bank of Ireland and the European Banking Authority, with the latter having recently concluded a consultation on risk factors. New provisions on information sharing and dissemination will also improve co-operation among supervisors.

Deputy Conway-Walsh asked about sanctions for violations of the Bill by those in the financial services industry. The first thing to note is that these may be criminal offences and can be prosecuted as such by the Garda. The Central Bank also has strong administrative sanction powers in respect of regulated firms. It can impose a fine of up to the greater of €10 million or 10% of a firm's turnover, and can potentially suspend its authorisation to conduct business. Individuals can face fines of up to €1 million and be disqualified from managing a firm.

Deputy Howlin asked about resources within the Garda to target economic crime, as did many other Deputies this evening. I acknowledge the very significant successes achieved by An Garda Síochána in recent years, particularly the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and the Criminal Assets Bureau in their work targeting organised crime gangs and groups.

A recent example of this was Operation Omena, under which the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, working with colleagues in Finland and with the support of Europol and Eurojust, successfully took action against a group involved in cyber fraud and money laundering. CAB has been central to many recent significant operations to combat organised criminal activity. Deputy Howlin will be aware that as part of Operation Coronation, on 17 June, more than 170 members of An Garda Síochána from Limerick, Clare and Tipperary divisions, supported by CAB, carried out 67 searches of dwellings, businesses and land in those counties. Significant evidence to support the investigation, including financial accounts and property documentation, was recovered.

Deputy Howlin noted that significant resources are assigned to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and CAB. The former has a dedicated money laundering investigation unit. To further build skills across the force, the Garda Síochána training college and University College Dublin offer an accredited postgraduate certificate in fraud and e-crime investigation to some 44 gardaí per annum drawn from all Garda divisions and from specialist units.

Several Deputies asked about the timing of the transposition of the directive. Ireland takes its EU obligations very seriously and we are progressing this Bill as a priority. However, this is a complex area which spans not only multiple Departments but many sectors of the economy. Different bodies are involved in regulating the different designated persons, from the Central Bank in respect of financial services firms to the professional bodies for accounting, legal services and more. There was a need to engage in appropriate consultation and consideration and to ensure the legislation is robust enough to underpin criminal and regulatory sanctions. It needs to be effective and enforceable. It also needs to be communicated through designated persons to enable people to properly comply with their obligations. The non-criminal justice aspects of the directive are also complex, with beneficial ownership being particularly challenging from both a legal and an administrative perspective. Officials have been in contact with the European Commission throughout the process and have advised it of the publication of the Bill and the priority the Government places on its progress. The Commission has also been advised in detail of the individual measures Ireland is putting in place in this area.

Deputies Howlin, Daly and Kelly referred to money mules. As Deputies Howlin, Buckley, Cathal Crowe and others noted, it is vital to emphasise that a person who acts as a mule may be convicted of a money laundering offence and face a maximum sentence of 14 years. Such a conviction can affect visa applications, the ability to work in the financial sector and the ability to access financial products in the future. Whatever the temptations for those in a financially precarious position, the reality is that many mules ultimately receive no payment and may instead be defrauded themselves or coerced into future transactions or criminal activity. This is an area of particular focus for the anti-money laundering steering committee, the Garda and the financial institutions concerned. For any young person thinking that this might be a way to make a few easy euro, they should be aware that having a criminal conviction with the terms "money laundering" and "terrorist financing" in that conviction could destroy any potential future career. I ask anybody, before they enter into such activity, to think seriously about the potential outcome for their long-term future.

Deputies Richmond and Buckley mentioned co-operation between the Government and police forces in the UK, throughout Europe and internationally. They are correct that this is an important aspect of dealing with this type of activity. We are talking about criminals who are very organised and are operating at an international level, and we must be the same. We have to be organised, resourced and operating at an international level to stop them.

Several Deputies referred to the misery caused by the activities referred to in this Bill. This is a point that must be hammered home. Behind all this money, whether it is laundered for criminals or used to finance terrorism, is absolute and pure misery. It is misery in the socioeconomic sense and also misery in terms of the physical impact it has on people, including serious harm and, in some cases, death. The amount of damage being done to our society through this money is unbelievable. Not only is there no easy money to be made but what money is made is secured on the back of very serious damage to society right across the board. Some of what is going on is shocking.

Questions were raised in regard to the register of beneficial ownership. That will be a matter for the Minister for Finance to address further.

Deputy Catherine Murphy raised the issue of prepaid payment cards. We are not banning all such cards but simply introducing some restrictions on the anonymity aspects. For example, certain prepaid cards for purchasing items or gifts will require customer verification. The Department is working very closely with all stakeholders on the impact and implementation of this Bill. While legislative provisions are important, they are of little benefit if they are not implemented. We will work with all Departments and State agencies to ensure the implementation of these provisions.

Deputy Mattie McGrath raised the issue of the application of the provisions to family members. There is no scope or possibility to derogate from the requirements or to exclude family members. That is a crucial part of the Bill. While we all believe our family members would not be involved in anything like this, it is an important aspect of this issue and one on which the State needs to be able to keep an eye.

In regard to virtual currencies, they are clearly an important and evolving area of activity. The directive covers custodian wallet providers and services providing exchange between virtual and fiat currencies. This is reflected in the Bill but it will be necessary to go further in due course. Policing the conversion from fiat to virtual and vice versawill ultimately not be sufficient, as outlined in the latest Financial Action Task Force, FATF, recommendations. The priority in respect of this Bill has been the transposition of the directive. It may be possible to incorporate some of the current developments on virtual currencies into it. If not, they will be implemented in the future. This is a fast-moving area of law and a fast-changing area of criminal activity but we are determined to keep up with developments.

I thank Deputies for supporting the Bill and I look forward to working with them as it progresses through the Oireachtas.

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