Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Daniel Hurley, parliamentary researcher, for his very informative digest of this Bill. The purpose of the Bill is to transpose an EU directive to make provision for three EU instruments dealing with the authenticity and fitness checking of euro banknotes and coins and measures for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting. The deadline for transposing the directive was 23 May 2016 so this legislation is a long time coming. Ireland is the only member state of the EU, apart from Denmark which in not in the euro area and which has opted out, that is yet to transpose the directive. This in inexcusable. We should, and must, do better.

It is interesting to note that the majority of the counterfeit notes are in the mid-range. Some 34% of counterfeit notes are €20 euro notes and 37% are €50 notes. A strengthening of the law in this area is long overdue. Counterfeit money is often passed in smaller shops and this can have a great effect on the profit margins of those shops. As a former volunteer in a charity shop, I know from personal experience that these shops have been targeted by counterfeiters. This can have a detrimental effect on the money they raise. They need this money to help many deserving causes. I am reminded of my school days, many years ago, when I first heard of Gresham's law. This is the economic maxim that bad money drives good money out of circulation. I understand that the incidence of counterfeiting is relatively low in Ireland but that it often funds other illegal activity. It is welcome that we are strengthening the law in this area.

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