Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 63: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if all sections of the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act, 2009, have been brought into operation; the number of occasions on which the powers contained in the Act have been used since its enactment; the number of prosecutions transferred to the Special Criminal Court under the provisions of Section 8 of the Act; the number of charges that have proffered under the powers contained in the Act; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5616/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009 became law on 23 July 2009 and all sections of this Act are in operation. Section 8 of the Act schedules the organised crime offences specified for the purpose of the provisions under the Offences Against the State Act 1939 relating to the use of the Special Criminal Court.

This piece of legislation is aimed at tackling serious crimes and I can assure the House that An Garda Síochána have been actively using its provisions to target and disrupt organised criminal networks and their activities.

Given the serious nature of the offences dealt with under the legislation in question a full and thorough investigation of individuals and their activities is necessary and must be conducted before charges can be brought against them.

Given the relatively recent enactment of this legislation it remains too early to collate meaningful statistics in relation to the operation of all of its provisions. I am however advised that a number of investigation files have been submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

I can assure the Deputy that An Garda Síochána will continue to utilise all available legislation, including all the additional legislative provisions introduced by the Oireachtas in 2009 relating to organised crime, to develop and implement strategies to continue to dismantle and disrupt criminal networks.