Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 24 October 2012
199. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the extent to which extra facilities or legislation required by the Criminal Assets Bureau has been put in place in accordance with the requirement of the Criminal Assets Bureau; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46802/12]
View answerThe Programme for Government includes a commitment to strengthen the powers of the Criminal Assets Bureau in relation to the forfeiture of the proceeds of crime. In this regard, an Expert Group established under the auspices of my Department is engaged in a comprehensive review of the Proceeds of Crime legislation with a view to identifying possible improvements which would serve to strengthen the operation of the Criminal Assets Bureau. The Chief Bureau Office and Bureau Legal Officer of the Criminal Assets Bureau are represented on the Expert Group, along with representatives from the Crime and Criminal Law Reform Divisions of my Department and a representative from the Office of the Attorney General. When the work of the Expert Group concludes, it is my intention to bring forward proposals in due course for inclusion in the Criminal Justice (Proceeds of Crime) Bill. I assure the Deputy that I am committed to ensuring the necessary funding is made available to the Criminal Assets Bureau from within the available public finances. In this regard, I am satisfied that an appropriate level of funding has been made available to the bureau for 2012. The Deputy may recall that as part of the Estimates process earlier this year, it was possible to maintain the budget available to the bureau at just over €7.7 million. Finally, I assure the Deputy that the resources of the Bureau are, and will continue to be, kept under ongoing review by the Criminal Assets Bureau and my Department.
