Mike Kennelly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am raising a very serious issue today that has blighted Knock in west Limerick and the lives of vulnerable people. Door-to-door scammers acting as bogus traders are scamming vulnerable people out of extortionate amounts of money. They are acting as tradesmen doing jobs like power hosing, painting or a tar job. One guy in the Knock area was caught for up to €4,000.Another job was up to €1,100. An elderly lady was charged €600 for a ten-minute job. They are posing as handymen but they are parasites in our area. The Minister for Justice was here for Commencement matters. This is a crime being committed right now. I was on Radio Kerry yesterday making people in my area aware that these scammers are operating. As Senator Brady said last week regarding foot and mouth, they have no borders. They are not just in my area but across the country. I want the Minister for Justice or whoever it is to call on the gardaí for a public awareness campaign and for gardaí to step up their efforts to stop these people. They are taking in innocent, vulnerable people and it needs to be stopped straight away.