Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As was stated, this proposal builds on the original anti-trafficking directive from 2011. It will hopefully help to strengthen the ability of the EU to combat human trafficking-related crimes and give stronger tools for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute. On that basis, Sinn Féin will support the passage of this proposal and we look forward to further progress in implementation. I acknowledge what the Minister of State said about Article 7 and the cross-referencing and tweaks that may have to be made to it.

Trafficking is ultimately a criminal economic market and, as the Minister of State said, it is an exploitative crime which destroys lives. With demand in Europe for immigration and asylum from the global south higher than ever, we cannot ignore these realities. It is notable, as was outlined in a recent article in the Associated Press, the traditional route from north Africa across to Europe has now been securitised so much that alternative routes are now being used. We saw with the Frontex issue that this has not always been done in accordance with international and domestic law. We agree that while the official figures may indicate there are 7,000 trafficked persons, there are probably many more than that.

The net effect of all the trafficking is that, according to the Associated Press article, the crossing routes are even more dangerous. Routes around the western coast of Morocco and towards the Canary Islands are being attempted. This has meant, as Deputies will know, that boats are washing up as far away as the Caribbean, with all aboard having been killed at sea. Desperate for work or to be united with family, many are falling into the hands of unscrupulous traffickers who often abandon or let down the vulnerable migrants. Along with the legal solutions contained in this proposal, Europe needs to recognise the economic and social routes of migration and deal with them accordingly. Until this is done, and Ireland is well-placed to provide moral leadership on this, we will keep seeing tragedies unfold.

With regard to Ireland's policies, the US State Department produced an excellent report on trafficking in 2022 which placed Ireland in the group of tier B nations with respect to anti-trafficking. According to the report, the prevalence of human trafficking in Ireland is likely to be higher than official statistics report. A comprehensive 2021 study found that from 2014 to 2019, the true number of trafficking victims was likely to have been 38% higher than official national statistics. This is extremely worrying. Both detection and enforcement also seem to be lacking. According to the findings of the US report, Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, inspectors reportedly found several violations of employment and labour law in the fishing sector and referred several employers for prosecution but it did not report law enforcement actions against any companies for labour trafficking in 2021. My county has one of the longest coastlines in the country and is a prime site for potential trafficking. When laws were debated in this area previously, the House was informed of a HSE team working with trafficking victims. I would be interested to hear more about this team and its work around the State, particularly on the western coast.

I note that some negotiations are ongoing on this proposal. Will the Minister of State explain how much of this is connected with the Border, the common travel area and Brexit? I ask him to get back to me on that after the debate.

The State has some way to go and perhaps the harmonisation proposals contained here will assist. It is notable that the EU is seeking, as the Minister of State said, to harmonise co-operation more and more because crime is increasingly transnational. By definition, trafficking is international in nature and is, therefore, a good candidate for such proposals. Some social networks have been used for trafficking and Europe needs to stand up to the tech companies enabling this trade.

We welcome the ideas included in the amended directive which specifically refer to offences committed or facilitated through information and communication technologies, including the Internet and social media, as well as the other proposals in relation to mandatory sanctions for legal persons and a formal national referral mechanism which will improve early identification and referral for assistance and support of victims. That will create the basis for a European referral mechanism. We also welcome the stepping up of demand reduction by making it a criminal offence for people who knowingly use the services provided by victims of trafficking and the EU-wide data collection which helps in so many other ways.

The proposal is welcome insofar as it addresses the wide range of trafficking offences. We have spoken about the covert crossings but also many victims of trafficking enter through commercial air and sea routes. They often do so with the assistance of traffickers and, as noted in the US State Department report, this is done with the promise of legitimate employment and visas, or through some other types of scams. Once people arrive here, they are forced into what is basically indentured work or slavery in beauty salons or maybe in sex work. The Journalreported this week on a Garda investigation which discovered the large-scale rental of properties for use as brothels by criminal gangs. The gangs then charge sex workers large sums to use these apartments with only a fraction of the income going to the workers and an always present threat of constant violence.

As I mentioned, the proposals refer to possible criminalisation of those knowingly using the services provided by the victims. With industries such as sex work, as well as forced marriages and illegal adoptions, to which the Minister of State also referred, involved, An Garda Síochána will have to recruit from, and work with, diverse communities of migrants. It may be that the Garda is having difficulties increasing its numbers but there is potential to increase them by doing more recruiting from those communities. More emphasis needs to be placed on this and credit must go to the Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris, who is personally very conscious of this need.

Overall, Sinn Féin supports the passing of the motion and we look forward to further progress in implementing the proposal.

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