Human Trafficking

Monday, 11 September 2023

Questions (1073, 1074, 1075)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

1073. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the number of reports of human trafficking received by gardaí in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023. [37296/23]

View answer

1074. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice if she has undertaken to examine the rate of child trafficking in the State; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37297/23]

View answer

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

1075. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice if her Department is aware of any instances of trafficking for organ harvesting in the State over the past decade; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37298/23]

View answer

Written answers

Minister for Justice

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1073 to 1075, inclusive, together.

The prevention, detection and prosecution of the abhorrent crime of human trafficking is a priority for me as Minister for Justice and for this Government.

A number of significant measures have been taken to combat human trafficking, to create a more victim-centred approach to identifying and supporting victims, and to raise awareness and provide training for those who need it.

The most significant of these has been the development of the new National Referral Mechanism (NRM) framework which will make it easier for victims of human trafficking to come forward and access supports and services by providing a role for a range of state bodies and NGOs in identifying victims of human trafficking and referring them to the NRM.

The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill 2023, which will put the revised NRM on a statutory footing, was published last July and is a priority for this new term.

Alongside this, officials in my Department are working on finalising our new National Action Plan on Human Trafficking which we expect to publish shortly. It will set out how the multi-agency work to combat this criminal activity and support victims will be taken forward.

In relation to the specific figures sought by the Deputy, the following figures have been provided to my Department by the Human Trafficking Investigation and Coordination Unit in An Garda Síochána for our annual reports, which are available on www.blueblindfold.ie

Year	Number of Identified Victims
2014	38
2015	62
2016	75
2017	75
2018	64
2019	42
2020	38
2021	44
2022	42

The Deputy will wish to be aware that a change in recognition of prosecutions and convictions internationally as human trafficking, except in distinct circumstances in respect of certain offences under Section 3(2) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998 as amended, from 2018 onward has resulted in a lower numbers identified as victims of human trafficking relative to previous years.

In relation to the information sought in respect of the rate of the rate of child trafficking in the State, An Garda Síochána have advised that as a result of the introduction of new Pulse Incident Types during 2021, some of which relate specifically to offences against children, it is only possible to provide incident counts from 01/01/2022.

As such I am informed that there were five incident counts in 2022 where type relates specifically to a child and four in 2023.

The Deputy will be interested to know that the identification and protection of child trafficking victims in Ireland is a key priority and while the majority of actions in the new National Action Plan on Human Trafficking relate to both adult and child victims, there are a number of child specific measures included under each of the plan’s pillars.

Finally, in relation to the Deputy's question concerning the crime of organ harvesting occurring within the State over the past decade, An Garda Síochána have advised that the count of human trafficking incidents of type 'Removal of Organs - Person Other Than A Child' for that time period is too low to report.

Question No. 1074 answered with Question No. 1073.

Question No. 1075 answered with Question No. 1073.