Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will be relatively brief. I have not been too lucky with my amendments but I will not take it personally.

I thank the Minister of State for addressing the House on this important legislation. The sentiments expressed today and in the amendments indicate that we are all approaching this from a sincere point of view in that we want to get the legislation right. In the past 24 hours, I have engaged with some of the Minister of State's officials to try to refine the Bill. While I appreciate the nature of Standing Orders, I encourage the Minister of State and his officials to reflect on the sentiments expressed in the previous amendments.

We are dealing with criminals who are preying on society and living lavish lifestyles while routinely destroying the communities that we all care for, come from and have the privilege to represent. There is an urgency in the core elements of the Bill and we do not intend in anything we do to try to delay or impede its passage. I support the seizure of criminals' assets and the transfer of same simply and directly to the communities most affected by the gangsters. This investment of assets would and should be direct, smooth and, where possible, unhindered by bureaucracy. We want to see the people most affected by these criminals benefitting from the seized assets. We need a review of the current system in order to achieve a direct line of funding via the seized assets for communities in need. The direct line approach is also appropriate in circumstances where, for example, assets are seized in either Irish jurisdiction, North or South. Assets should not be frozen while awaiting a legal challenge by criminals. They should be transferred to the areas where the crimes were committed. I am concerned that, in the midst of the difficult and sometimes damaging situations addressed by this legislation, we not lose sight of this opportunity. Following implementation by the Minister of State's colleagues in the North, I am aware of community groups, organisations, projects and programmes benefitting from directly seized criminal assets. We should consider this issue, tease it out and examine best practice as the Bill and subsequent reviews proceed.

In terms of the broader societal and criminal justice issues, those who are responsible for the crimes on our streets and for torturing our communities must be tackled swiftly and in compliance with human rights legislation. In parallel with that and where opportunities present, there is an onus on us to ensure that we direct responsibly and appropriately some of the ill-gotten assets back into the communities that suffered the burden of crime.