I move amendment No. 1:
In page 4, line 31, after "state" to insert "concerned".
I welcome the Minister to the House to consider this important legislation. Perhaps when the Minister responds to my amendment, he might give us an indication of where we are at with it because the Bill was published in 2000, yet it has taken until now for it to reach this stage. The Bill is part of the arrangements to give effect to the action plan on organised crime which was agreed in Amsterdam in 1997, some six years ago. The date for ratification was extended to 2001, yet according to the informative memo the Minister gave us, only Austria and Germany have ratified it so far. Has the agreement been ratified by any other states? Obviously, Ireland has not yet ratified it and it is important we do so before our Presidency of the EU begins next year. It seems a pity that an organised crime plan, which seeks the support of all member states, introduced and agreed in 1997, should still be waiting to be passed through the Oireachtas. It does not seem like there is much interest in having this ratified in other EU states since only two have done so to date.
This legislation is important because it deals with the trafficking of drugs on the high seas and into our territorial waters. That is a crime under our legislation but what was not dealt with was how the issue could be processed and whether the matter is dealt with in the flag or registration country of the ship or in the country where the offender resided. This legislation provides that the first preferential step could be taken by the country in which the ship resides.
Section 4, subsection (1) will state that the mas ter of the vessel "shall be entitled to communicate with the authorities of the convention state concerned and the owner or operator of the vessel for the purpose of notifying them that the vessel has been boarded." It is a technical amendment with the intention of making the section more specific. It is a little inelegant as it stands; this amendment would sharpen the intention of the section, making it clearer that it is the particular state to which we are referring.