John Gilroy (Labour)

I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. I have noticed that many of the Opposition speakers in this House and virtually all of them in the other House begin their contributions by quoting long lists of negative statistics about the country. While we do not want to delude ourselves about the difficulties facing small and medium-sized enterprises and we want to recognise that these difficulties are substantial, it is important that the House tries to project some form of confidence in the economy. Some €110 billion of Irish people's money is in the Irish retail banks and the only way we can start creating jobs in small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the lifeblood of this economy, is to start generating confidence so that people spend their money in the local economy.

My main point concerns competition law. It is important to prioritise the enforcement of competition law in the State. Competition law in the State is 20 years old yet enforcement is not always as we would like it to be. There are well-established rules, particularly against cartels and concerted practices but actions are few and infrequent. Taking a case through the criminal process is complex and not enough resources are provided to ensure the correct enforcement of competition law. It is said that collusive behaviour is widespread in Ireland and there is some evidence of it. It concerns not only price-fixing but also bid rigging. For far too long, cosy cartels have not been challenged at enormous cost to the economy. Anti-competitive behaviour costs the retail sector and business in Ireland more than it should, making their costs higher. We also lose in other ways because anti-competitive behaviour deters would-be entrants to the market. This was highlighted in the IMF memorandum of understanding.

I call for a radical overhaul of competition prioritisation and competition in Ireland. I welcome the decision to advertise for four full-time posts in the Competition Authority last week. The Competition Authority had previously been staffed by temporary appointees. We live in interesting times and we find ourselves cutting budgets across all headings. Cutting funding to the Competition Authority is not an option we can afford. I want to see increased resources made available to the authority and these should be targeted at hard-core cartels. In a recent court case concerning cartel activity in car dealerships, DPP v Duffy, Mr. Justice McKechnie was hard-hitting in his assessment, describing cartels as odious practice and as offensive and abhorrent. It is hoped that this may signal a change in how we view this activity.

If the Government is serious about our need to address this area, it would be no harm to see resources made available and those involved in cartels taken before the criminal courts and spending a few months in jail. That would send a strong message and it would encourage individuals with knowledge of cartel activity to seek immunity under the leniency programme operated by the Competition Authority. In other jurisdictions, leniency programmes are successful in providing this evidence, which is hard to obtain, so that it results in successful prosecutions.

I cannot overstate the importance of taking on those who operate cartels. We must provide resources to the Competition Authority and we must amend existing legislation to provide for more punitive civil remedies. We must also send out the message that if one fixes prices, divides up markets or rigs bid for contracts, one will be caught and will suffer the consequences.