Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 67: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the measures his Department has to track the movements and behaviour of known serious criminals living in housing estates; the checks and protections in place to protect residents and public safety in estates in which criminals are known to reside; and if he liaises with the Department of Social and Family Affairs to advise it of the level of income such people derive from criminal activity for consideration by that Department in determining their eligibility for social welfare payments, rent supplement and other State benefits. [14603/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Persons involved in organised criminal activities are being targeted by An Garda Síochána in a number of ways, including uniform and plain clothes personnel overtly and covertly disrupting known criminals in the course of criminal activities. Such criminals, their operating methods, criminal interests and financial assets are proactively targeted through intelligence-led operations, for example, Operation Anvil.

Multi-agency approaches have been and continue to be used where all of the national units from the Garda national support services are used to combat serious crime. In addition, an intensified programme of multi-agency checkpoints involving officers from the Department of Social and Family Affairs is being undertaken. The Criminal Assets Bureau, CAB, which includes a number of social welfare inspectors appointed as bureau officers, is being actively utilised to identify and target funds accumulated by criminals in order to seize such assets and to deprive them of the profits of their criminal activity.

Some 102 Garda divisional asset profilers have been trained by CAB and are now in place in every Garda division. Their role is to collate information at a local level and to carry out preparatory groundwork in advance of a full investigation by CAB. The social welfare inspectors attached to the bureau investigate and determine social welfare entitlements of persons who derive assets from criminal activity.

In addition, the regional director's office of the Department of Social and Family Affairs fully co-operates with all requests by CAB officers in respect of cases and refers departmental cases deemed suitable for consideration of investigation and determination by the bureau. The effectiveness of this approach can be seen from the fact that, in the period since CAB's inception up to the end of 2007, it made savings of more than €3.5 million and recovered €2.5 million in respect of social welfare payments.

Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Is the Minister satisfied with the entente between his Department and elements of the Departments of Social and Family Affairs and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government under their respective Ministers, Deputies Hanafin and Gormley? The Garda is spending significant funds on trying to track and pursue known criminals to the best of its ability. On Tuesday mornings, however, they show up at their local unemployment exchanges and get money from the State. They also get rent allowance, as the relevant local authorities have sanctioned their housing needs.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Ask a question.

Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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It is coming. Criminals are robbing, selling drugs and acquiring the criminal assets referred to by Deputies Charles Flanagan and Rabbitte. Is there co-operation between the relevant Departments and is the Minister satisfied that it is sufficient? I am not.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I am satisfied with the co-operation. While I was the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs from 1997 to 2002, I instigated multi-agency checkpoints, which were criticised by parts of the House. The checkpoints comprised gardaí, social welfare officers and officials from the Departments of Transport and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, customs and Revenue. Over the years, the checkpoints have gone somewhat into abeyance. Thanks to an initiative I took in more recent times in my current Ministry, the multi-agency checkpoints are up and running and meeting with significant success. This is in addition to the ongoing co-operation between the Departments. Moreover, as I noted in my previous response, social welfare officers are seconded to the CAB and there is close liaison between the CAB and the Department of Social and Family Affairs to ensure that those involved in criminal activity do not obtain social welfare payments. As the Deputy will note from the figures provided, significant savings have been made in that regard.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I call Deputy D'Arcy, for a brief supplementary question..

Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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While the Minister may be satisfied, I am not. I made a remarkable discovery lately concerning a known criminal who was sought by the Garda and who lived in an estate in which the other residents were terrified of him. On investigating this issue, I discovered the person in question is in receipt of rent allowance and benefits.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Does the Deputy have a question?

Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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The most inappropriate fact I ascertained was that he was living in a house that is owned by a prison officer. Does the Minister consider it to be appropriate to have a criminal living in a house that is owned by a prison officer and for the State to be paying the rent?

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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That question is beyond the scope of the initial question.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Absolutely. If one considers the social welfare Vote, in which there have been savings of €476 million through fraud controls in 2008, this is a wider issue. There is a concentrated issue that pertains in particular to those involved in gangland crime. Such people are profiled through the CAB profilers, of whom there are 102 and who operate in every Garda district nationwide, to ensure that everyone in the system, whether in social welfare, customs, Revenue, the Garda Síochána or any other Department, is aware of the involvement of those people.

Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Although the soft information is present, it is not being acted on.