Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is time we had a debate about the problem of human trafficking and how we are dealing with it in this country in light of the latest Trafficking in Persons, TIP, report, which was published by the US Department of State recently. As colleagues will know, this report monitors international standards on combating human trafficking and is viewed as the most comprehensive analysis of trends in the area. The recent report includes some startling conclusions about Ireland. We are ranked as what the State Department calls a "Tier 2 Watch List" state, which is the third of four possible rankings. States included in this bracket are deemed not to meet minimum standards in combatting human trafficking where the number of victims is "very significant or is significantly increasing and the country is not taking proportional concrete actions".

The TIP report states that in 2020, the Irish Government "investigated and prosecuted fewer suspected traffickers, did not prosecute any labor traffickers, and victim identification decreased for the fourth year in a row". It states that the lack of conviction for trafficking "weakened deterrence, contributed to impunity for traffickers, and undermined efforts to support victims to testify". This is the second consecutive year that Ireland has ranked so badly. I wonder what it says about us as a country. The report found that victims are being exploited in domestic work, the restaurant industry, cannabis cultivation, nail salons, food processing, waste management, fishing, seasonal agriculture and car washing services.

I was in touch with a religious sister recently who is doing very good work in this area. She made the chilling comment that there is not a town in Ireland but has victims of human trafficking working in it. This is all going on under our noses and we talk very little about it. We virtue signal, of course, when the Prime Minister of Hungary, Mr. Viktor Orbán, introduces a law that we do not like but we rub shoulders with Iranian and Chinese leaders in the name of trade when it suits us. Certainly, there is not enough happening on this issue of trafficking. I call for a debate to see how we can urge the Government to do better in combatting human trafficking.

I will conclude by saying that I support what my colleague, Senator Craughwell, had to say in opposing the Order of Business today in light of the ongoing guillotining and bad treatment of the legislative process in this House.