The Control of Exports (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1956, which was enacted originally for a period of three years and has since been renewed in normal course, at the end of each three-year period, will expire on 31st December, 1977.
The purpose of this Bill is to continue the 1956 Act in force for a five-year period, that is, until 31st December, 1982 and to provide that the penalty prescribed in section 3 (4) of the Act in respect of the offence of making a false or misleading statement or representation to the Minister for the purpose of obtaining an export licence, shall be increased from £100 to £500.
The Act empowers the Minister to prohibit by order, the export of industrial goods save under a licence issued by him. Such orders have a life of 12 months only and may be annulled at any time during this period by resolution of either House of the Oireachtas. Control is at present in force on a range of goods under the Control of Exports Order, 1977, and the Control of Exports (Southern Rhodesia) Order, 1977.
Goods the export of which is controlled for reasons of supply are listed in Parts I and II of the Schedule to the Control of Exports Order, 1977. Those controlled for strategic reasons are shown in Part III of that Schedule.
As a member state of the European Economic Community, Ireland is obliged to comply with the requirements of Community law relating to the export to third countries of ferrous and non-ferrous wastes and scraps. The supplies of iron and steel scrap and of waste and scrap of aluminium and lead arising in this country are essential to the needs of home users. It is in our interest, therefore, to apply in this country the restriction imposed by the Community on the shipment of these scrap materials to third countries. The home supply of copper and copper alloy waste and scrap is not fully utilised by home processors. Accordingly, Ireland obtains each year a share of the export quota appointed for these scraps by the Community permitting limited quantities to be exported to third countries.
Export control on goods classified as "strategic" is not operated at Community level. Each member state of the European Economic Community and eight other countries control the export of such goods under national legislation and the proposed Bill enables this country to continue to do likewise. Ireland's participation in the international strategic export control arrangements derives essentially from this country's need to import supplies of certain high technology industrial materials and components required by the more sophisticated industries established here in recent years and which cater mainly for export markets. Since the movement of these goods to Ireland is controlled, in most cases, by precisely those countries which participate in the strategic control arrangements, it is considered essential that the Minister should continue to control the export of goods of a strategic character in order to ensure:
(1) continued access for Irish firms to the strategic goods referred to; and
(2) that employment will be fully maintained in the plants where they are utilised and in any similar plants that may be established here in the future.
Ireland's membership of the United Nations Organisation carries a commitment to apply here mandatory resolutions of the UN Security Council imposing restrictions on the export of goods to Southern Rhodesia and of arms and military supplies to South Africa.
For the following reasons, therefore, I consider it necessary for the Minister to have continuing powers to maintain the existing export controls and to enact the appropriate legislation for the purpose:
(a) to comply with our obligations under Community law as expressed in EEC Regulation No. 2603/69 to restrict, for the benefit of Irish and other Community processors, shipment of scrap metals to third countries and to ensure conditions of comparative price stability for these scraps in the home and Community markets.
(b) to ensure that strategic materials, for example, arms, ammunition, military and naval stores, certain military aircraft, computers, and so on, are not exported from or through this country to undesirable destinations abroad in accordance with the requirements of the international export control to which Ireland subscribes.
(c) to enable the Government to realise a general foreign policy aim of preventing the export of strategic or potentially strategic goods to areas where they could contribute to an increase in international tension or provide support for the apartheid policies of the Government of South Africa or other similar repressive regimes.
(d) to comply with the mandatory resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council requiring member states to prevent the exportation of goods to Southern Rhodesia, and of arms and military supplies to South Africa.
(e) to have immediately available a means of dealing quickly with any emergency which might denude the country of essential materials before corrective legislation could be enacted.
When the 1956 Act was last renewed in 1974, its validity was extended for a period of three years and nine months terminating on 31st December, 1977. Since the commitments mentioned will continue for the foreseeable future, it is considered that the Act should be extended on this occasion for a period of five years. This would not alter an essential feature of the 1956 Act, that is that the need for the powers which it confers should be reviewed by the Oireachtas from time to time.
Orders made by the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Energy under the Act provide that goods, the export of which is so controlled, may not be exported except under the authority of a licence granted by the Minister. Section 3 (4) of the Act states:
Every person who, for the purpose of obtaining for himself or any other person a licence, makes any statement or representation which is to his knowledge false or misleading in any material respect shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.
It is considered that £100 is not now an adequate penalty for offences of this kind, having regard to the fall in the value of money since 1956 and because a more effective deterrent is needed to discourage misrepresentation particularly in the realm of strategic goods where money values are often substantial. In these circumstances, a fine not exceeding £500 for the offence described at section 3 (4) of the Act is not considered an excessive penalty and section 2 of the Bill provides for such a penalty.
For the reasons mentioned I commend this Bill to the favourable consideration of Seanad Éireann.