Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This is the latest in a series of motions we have had to consider regarding international co-operation to fight organised crime. Given the fact that criminal gangs are, like most enterprises, becoming larger, more sophisticated and increasingly transnational, the response to them must also advance in the same respect. Accordingly, I am happy to speak in favour of the motion.

There remain, however, some aspects of how we deal with money laundering in this jurisdiction that leave something to be desired. Enabling legislation for other EU directives and regulations in the area of anti-money laundering was slow, such that the State ran the risk of sanction for non-compliance. The defence for corporate entities inserted into that legislation when it eventually came before the House may be necessitated by case law, but it will be very interesting to see how that may play out.

Unfortunately, there are few chances of banks and other entities being brought before the courts on these charges. As other speakers outlined, it will be people at the bottom of the chain who will face the rigours of the court. Given the poor resources offered to some of the institutions, of necessity, it will be the low-hanging fruit that will be picked off. Let us make no mistake, the Government cannot beat its chest about tackling organised crime until this area is addressed properly. White-collar crime enables drug debts throughout the State to be collected and laundered and we cannot tackle one without the other.

While anti-money laundering legislation is welcome for the reasons I have outlined, there is an unintended side effect. Regulation means the likes of the credit unions and post offices must dedicate more resources to this work, hindering the operation of such vital, local institutions. The fall in the past 18 months in social welfare payments meant their viability was affected and it has not been balanced by any extra commercial activities. The recent decision to help out the Bank of Ireland is not going to cut the mustard. The Grant Thornton report must be implemented. All Deputies probably received an email from the postmasters about a fortnight ago.

I support them. The Government should intervene and give the extra investment to the post offices. As the report suggested, there will be an additional social benefit to the community of between €334 million and €700 million. It is for that reason that we must not take our eye off the ball. The Government should act fast in regard to supporting post offices around the country.

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