Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 4:

In page 29, between lines 42 and 43, to insert the following:

"18.—(1) It shall be an offence—

(a) for any person or body corporate to send or cause to be sent by use of the postal service, any medicinal product, where the sale of such a medicinal product is concerned, or where there is financial reward for the person or body corporate body so sending the medicinal product,

(b) for any person to order or take delivery, within this jurisdiction, of a medicinal product referred to in subsection (1).

(2) Where a person is guilty of an offence under subsection (1)(a), he shall be liable to a fine of up to €3,000, or up to twelve months in prison, or both.

(3) Where a person is guilty of an offence under subsection (1)(b), he shall be liable to a fine of up to €1,000, or up to three months in prison, or both."

As this amendment addresses the complicated and awkward area of importation of drugs from what is effectively an illegal source, I have discussed the matter with the Fine Gael Party legal adviser. While the obvious solution is to fine the person who sends the medicinal product by post, it is next to impossible to apprehend a person in the Bahamas who has sent a package to Ireland which contains cheap Viagra or another drug ordered on the Internet.

A second option is to fine the person who receives the package. It may be considered unfair to fine a person who has legally purchased and imported drugs via the Internet using a credit card. There is, however, an onus on the State to protect the health of its citizens, many of whom purchase bogus drugs of dubious quality. The system of fines proposed in the amendment would, I hope, deter people from purchasing drugs from outside the State via the Internet. Fines would be imposed only where it is proven that drugs intercepted on arrival in the State should not have been imported. The proposed recipients would be penalised in the interests of their personal health. While they might not thank the State initially, perhaps they will be grateful over time, particularly if it transpires that their health would have suffered had they taken the so-called drugs they ordered.

I appreciate this is a difficult matter as the obvious approach would be to fine the person sending the drugs. Given that this is not practical, it may be preferable to fine those who order them as a means of deterring those who seek to order medicinal products on-line. As the Minister of State, Deputy Tim O'Malley, noted, many companies sending spam have criminal connections and the sale of drugs by mail order is often a form of money laundering. The purpose of the motion is not to make a draconian change in the law but to protect the interests of citizens.