Marc MacSharry (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Callely, to the House. I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on this excellent Bill. I pay tribute to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform officials for their efforts in streamlining the Bill and dealing with issues that were wide open to interpretation.

The Bill copper-fastens the true intentions of the principal Act and is to be welcomed in that context.

The Act originated when Deputy O'Donoghue initiated a Private Member's Bill in the other House, the Organised Crime (Restraint and Disposal of Illicit Assets) Bill. It is worth noting that Fianna Fáil's efforts in Government carried on from the example it showed during its time in Opposition. This was the single greatest legislative initiative shown by any Government in recent years. The European Union's multidisciplinary group on organised crime concluded that the Irish authorities had shown they were prepared to be innovative in their approach to national and international organised crime, especially in regard to the Criminal Assets Bureau. The Proceeds of Crime Bill falls into the same category.

We have witnessed great benefits from this innovation in recent years in terms of clamping down on organised crime and the godfathers who are causing such havoc throughout the country. However, our innovation has been matched by further innovation on the part of criminals as they seek to find new ways of beating the system, which they are doing most successfully.

We have heard a great deal of reference in the debate to organised crime, drugs and the larger issues of crime. However, we must also seek to use similar initiatives in tackling petty crime. Public order offences are a matter of significant importance, particularly those which occur late at night due to alcohol and drug abuse or other factors. Minors carry out many of these crimes and we must find innovative ways of dealing with this problem.

There is a great onus on parents to take responsibility for their children's actions. Senator Scanlon suggested one approach to the problem last year, namely, that children's allowance, in effect, would be performance related. This would mean that if a child was out of school or was carrying out public order offences the responsibility would fall back on the parents and children's allowance would only be paid to those who took responsibility for their children and ensured they were in the right place at the right time.

Drugs and other serious problems must be tackled but we also have a responsibility to try to prevent younger emerging criminals from going bad. Those who commit public order offences today may go on to commit more serious crimes down the line. We must face up to the matter and try to come up with innovative approaches. While curtailing children's allowance may appear radical we must explore every possible option.

The best way to invest the proceeds of crime taken by the Criminal Assets Bureau would be to put it all into preventative strategies. The sports capital programme would be one worthy beneficiary. It would also be useful to work with various youth and sporting organisations on a national basis on strategies to prevent young people from becoming involved in crime. The young criminals of today will become the serious hardened and organised criminals of the future.

This funding should be used in the manner I have outlined. The sports capital programme is one way but I am sure there are many ways in which we can use the money to benefit children and younger people and keep them on the straight and narrow. This would be much more beneficial to them in the long term and to the State.

The Bill is highly technical. I especially welcome section 5, an amendment of section 6 of the principal Act, which would allow a dependant of a criminal who may not be involved in any criminal activity to be entitled to reasonable and necessary living expenses. That is a positive development.

Another issue which was wide open to interpretation is that frozen assets, including cash, were in the notional possession of the garda who moved the order. I am pleased this matter has been ironed out and that the criminal will still be in possession of his or her assets but will not be in a position to use them.

I welcome the Bill, as others have done. I congratulate the officials who drew up this legislation which took some time for a wide variety of reasons and join with others in commending it to the House.