Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy again for raising this very important issue. As I outlined, tackling organised criminal activity remains a key priority for the Government. The Minister, Deputy McEntee, and I are very conscious of the repercussions such criminal behaviour can have on the quality of life for residents in local communities, as the Deputy has outlined. It is important people feel safe and are safe in their communities.

The Deputy will be aware the criminal justice (miscellaneous provisions) Bill is currently being drafted and will provide, among other matters, for an increase in the penalty for conspiring to commit murder and soliciting to commit murder from a maximum term of imprisonment of ten years to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Work is continuing on the drafting of the Bill based on the general scheme and further legal advices. The 2022 justice plan commits to the publication of these provisions in the second quarter of this year. This and other initiatives in train, such as the commitment in the justice plan to working to break the link between gangs and the children they seek to recruit, build on the considerable range of legislative measures taken in recent years, such as the Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Act 2016, which provides additional Garda power for the immediate seizure of assets suspected of being the proceeds of crime to prevent them from being disposed of; the Criminal Justice (Forensic Evidence and DNA Database System) Act 2014, providing for the establishment and operation of the DNA database providing the Garda with links between people and unsolved crimes; and the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009, introduced to protect the justice system from being subverted by criminal groups, including the potential intimidation of juries.

The Deputy raised some very important issues, which I will bring to the attention of the Minister.

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