Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State and look forward to seeing him in our home county tomorrow. We will give him a very warm welcome, as usual. I compliment my colleague, Senator MacSharry, on bringing forward this legislation, and the theory behind it is to be commended. Nevertheless, it raises some fundamental questions. The purpose of the Bill is to provide new offences and prohibit unlicensed moneylenders from subjecting victims to harassment. While this may work fine in theory, there is also a responsibility on the Government to try to ensure that if the law is passed, there is additional support for the people at whom it is directed. Those involved with moneylending are usually in the very lowest strata of society and at their most vulnerable. They have gone through all the conventional methods of seeking finance for whatever purposes they need, and it is usually family reasons like communion, confirmation or a few days respite. It could be for a variety of legitimate reasons, even putting food on the table.

I must be careful in choosing words but with the plethora of Government and other agencies out there, there should not be any room for moneylenders. There is the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, various other worthwhile charities, the Money Advice & Budgeting Service, MABS, which helps people, especially those with limited resources manage their money, and there is the social welfare system. There really should not be any need for moneylenders, but the fact that there is means there is something wrong or malfunctioning within the system that drives people to extreme lengths, putting them in a most vulnerable position where a Bill of this nature must be passed to address issues of intimidation and harassment.

My only difficulty with the practicality of the Bill is that because of the circumstances of people who are involved with moneylenders, they will not only be the most vulnerable but will be so intimidated that gardaí will not be able to pursue prosecutions. To pursue a prosecution one must have witnesses and statements and go through the courts, all of which is included in this Bill. That will not happen. People will be fearful and we have heard some of the horrific stories circulating about the intimidation by moneylenders or associates. This has led Senator MacSharry to bring forward this legislation. One particular criminal who goes under one of the funny names applied to give a human face, such as the Penguin, went around with his name written on a van. He said he set himself up as a legitimate moneylender.