Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their good wishes and I look forward to working with those involved in this sector. I am conscious of the old saying that there is very little difference between a pat on the back and a kick somewhere else but I nevertheless welcome colleagues' good wishes.

A lot of broader, enterprise-related issues were raised, to which we will come back. Some very interesting thoughts were expressed earlier in the debate about the direction of travel in regard to investments and so on, which definitely are worth pursuing. I join all my colleagues in thanking and acknowledging the huge and continuing work done by IDA Ireland in extremely difficult circumstances to secure investment. That investment does not just come; it comes because many things are done to secure it, one of the key elements being the dedication of IDA Ireland and its staff to pursuing it.

I will go through some of the issues that were raised regarding the Bill and offer clarification. Deputy O'Reilly asked whether the UK and US are included in the provisions, to which the answer is "Yes". I want to be absolutely clear on that. We recognise the importance of the US and, indeed, the UK as sources of investment. They have strengthened their regimes in each of the individual countries but the unit in the Department will be appropriately resourced to take on this work. I assure the Deputy I will follow up on that.

In regard to bias, this legislation is explicitly not targeting any particular country. It deals with risk-based issues and it is inevitable that investments from all countries will be affected. That is the direction of travel. The 90-day period is very much an outer boundary. Decisions will be made as quickly as possible, which is relevant to the resource issue the Deputy raised. The 90-day period really applies to transactions in respect of which risks are identified to give time to work through that particular process.

National security is a national competence and all decisions in that regard will be made by Ireland. There will not be EU input into that. Such decisions are made by Ireland only and the process is very clear in that regard.

Deputy Martin Kenny expressed concern about the whole area of criminality. The characteristics of each investor will be considered and captured by the screening process that is outlined. Our main focus is security and public order. We have a lot of other tools, including CAB, to deal with the issues he raised and to achieve the other goals. I will bring the issue relating to CAB to the attention of the Minister for Justice.

Deputy Conway-Walsh spoke about the delay in bringing through the legislation. We are one of the final countries to do it but, equally, we can learn from what has gone before us in the 18 other member states that have implemented the measures. We can take on board what they have learned in terms of roll-out and best practice. The Deputy was worried about the narrow definitions of security and public order. The Bill covers both public and private actors and includes a wide range and a relatively wide definition of sensitive assets and technologies.

Deputy Ó Ríordáin expressed concern about a reluctance to use the powers set out in the Bill. We are not putting those powers in place for decoration. They are not going up on the shelf just for the sake of it. There will be an exclusive and extensive focus on the security of the State and public order. The intent is to use those powers. The reality, however, is that the vast majority of investments do not pose a risk. This legislation covers the scenario akin to "in case of emergency, break glass". We need to keep that in mind. It will be rarely used and we still will be a very attractive destination for FDI. Certainly, there is no disincentive to FDI in the Bill.

Bhí an Teachta Ó Cathasaigh ag caint faoi chúrsaí oideachais agus infheistíocht san oideachas tríú leibhéal. Níl sé sin mar chuid den Bhille seo ach is pointe an-tábhachtach é. Tá sé tábhachtach go mbeidh comhrá againn faoi infheistiú i gcúrsaí oideachais.

Deputy Patricia Ryan voiced concern about human rights and workers' rights. As I said, the focus of the Bill is very much on security. There are other tools to drive a focus onto the issues she raised.

Deputy Durkan referred to the UK being a third country, as was the choice of its people. We did not ask them to do that. The system as laid out in the legislation is very efficient. It is clear that in the case of transactions in respect of which no risk is identified, the system is efficient and robust enough to identify that.

I thank all the Deputies for their comments. We will bring the Bill to Committee Stage and it is important that we get it passed and in place as quickly as possible. I thank the Acting Chairman and the Ceann Comhairle for facilitating the debate and the officials involved in helping to ensure, we hope, that the Bill secures universal acceptance. It is a technical Bill that took a lot of work on the part of the officials in my Department, for which I thank them.

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