Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)

I welcome the views expressed by Senators Kelly, Barrett, Quinn and Ó Clochartaigh. Sticking to the civil issue, the advice to all Governments from Attorneys General has always been that we would be in breach of any provision in the Constitution if we did so; that is why there will not be civil fines. The Competition Authority and the troika both wanted civil fines but they are happy with this legislation. While it does not give us everything we might argue for right now, it is much stronger. The penalties now allow for imprisonment for up to ten years for a serious breach of this legislation. Someone thinking about anti-competitive activity will spend a lot longer in jail and the provision will apply to everyone in a company who may have had or acted upon direct knowledge of such activity. The legislation is much stronger than what went before it. It has taken account of all the views that have been raised by the parties, the statutory agency and the troika. This is the best way to get the results the Senators want, or at least significantly increased penalties.

Senators might already have a summary of the Competition Authority's enforcement record since 2000. There have been 33 convictions, 14 for Citroen cars, comprised of eight individuals and six undertakings, and a conviction against Ford. Home heating oil investigations led to 17 convictions. There has been one conviction for petrol price fixing and for hedge cutting three were found not guilty, with eight acquittals for Mayo waste cases. Two civil cases have been won involving the Licensed Vintners Association and the Beef Industry Development Society. A case was lost against the Irish League of Credit Unions following an appeal of a High Court decision. Three other cases were settled.

Senators asked what increases there would be in the authority's resources. Since the Second Stage debate, a review of the resourcing of the authority has been undertaken and in accordance with the EU-IMF commitment in this area, a report on whether resourcing is sufficient to allow adequate enforcement capacity of the legislative framework has been compiled. On foot of this review, I am pleased to announce the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation has approved an additional ten staff for the enforcement function of the authority. The current staffing level stands at 39. The necessary steps to fill these posts are being undertaken within the Department and authority in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.