Michael McCarthy (Labour)

One always finds the guy who does not want houses built in rural areas is the one with the nice little house tucked into a little green field on the side of a hill. It is the same with social welfare fraud. While I accept fraud deserves to face the full rigours of the justice system, I always ask those who go on about it their views on tax evasion. Tax evasion is as serious a crime as social welfare fraud. While I accept he cannot give me an exact figure, will the Minister give us an approximate figure as to how much social welfare fraud costs the State every year?

Two weeks ago two brothers were murdered by gangland criminals in this city. The media coverage said they were known to the Garda, as if their lives were worth less and almost justifying their murders. There are several people who walk freely around the Republic who almost brought the economy to the brink of collapse. They are also known to the Garda but then that is a societal interpretation.