Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank colleagues who know what we are talking about here for their support, in the most part, for this motion today. We all want the same thing here and the people of this country want the same thing. Where a person has committed a serious crime, where a group of individuals are spreading misery, mayhem, death and destruction across our communities, where they are dragging young people into lives of crime and misery, it is so important that they are held accountable in this country. That is what this about. It is about making sure that those who are responsible for inflicting nothing but misery on our country can be held accountable here. It is, as Deputies have suggested, about tightening the net and closing as many doors as possible to make sure that those who think they can cross borders and set up a better, nicer life while still continuing to conduct their criminal activities from those countries cannot do so. It is about closing as many doors as possible and providing fewer spaces for them to go to. No matter where they go, we will send a very clear message that we will continue to engage with every single country to put these types of measures and structures in place so that they can be brought home and held accountable in our own courts and by our own justice system. That has been absolutely imperative throughout these negotiations. While this is happening now, just before the Dáil breaks, the negotiations only began last Christmas. This has been done in a relatively short period although we have not, in any way, cut any corners. There has been a huge amount of work done by my team in the Department of Justice, working with members of the Garda, with officials in the UAE and its police service and judiciary, to make sure that we get this right. Human rights have been the basis of this at every step of the way, not just on our side but also from the UAE. We are all absolutely committed to making sure that all of these measures that I have outlined are very clearly in place.

Deputy Catherine Murphy asked a specific question. Article 10 of the extradition treaty outlines very clearly that we cannot surrender, or the country that has sought the extradition cannot surrender, a person to a third country or third party without the consent of the requesting party. That is very clearly stated in the document as outlined.

In terms of the overall work that has been done, Deputy Murphy referenced the inspectorate report which has only just been published. There is quite a number of recommendations in that report. I have to point out that there is quite a lot of positive commentary within the report, including an acknowledgement that there has been a huge amount of financial investment and other resources in An Garda Síochána to enable its members to work on a transnational basis with Interpol, Europol, their European and US counterparts and others across the world. We are building up those relationships because we know that crime knows no boundaries and because of the way in which criminals are now working and operating. A huge amount of positive work has been done and the report this week makes recommendations on how we can strengthen that work and do even more. What we are discussing here today really complements that. So much of the work I have done over the past four years has been about building up and investing in capacity. Almost half a billion euro more has been invested in the Garda over the past four years alone. That is not just going into increasing our numbers. I acknowledge that the numbers are not where I want them to be but they are gradually increasing. I can see that momentum building and I want that to continue even more, but we are also investing in technology, equipment and in building those relationships, in expanding the number of liaison officers that we have right across the world.

We must ensure that the Garda has the stations, all of the equipment and everything else it needs to do its job as effectively as possible. When these structures are put in place, the Garda must be supported to bring these criminals home and ensure they face the full rigour of the law. I thank colleagues for their support.

We will always ensure that as we build relationships, we engage on matters and different issues. While we will not always agree on certain matters, building those relationships and working and engaging with colleagues from right across the globe will mean we start to build and agree a common purpose and interest. We can then use that when it comes to peace. Deputy Howlin referenced the atrocities that are happening in Sudan. We are a small country that is focused on peace and we will use our voice to do everything we can to bring about peace no matter where in the world. That is the case in respect of our relationship with the UAE and other countries.

I again thank colleagues for their support of these motions, which are about assuring criminals who think they can cross boundaries to evade justice that there is nowhere to hide. Bit by bit, we will close every door available to them and will ensure they can be brought home to face justice in this country.

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