Pádraig MacLochlainn
Ceist:5. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Justice and Equality to strengthen the performance of the criminal justice system in tackling white collar crime. [3044/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 27 January 2016
Ceisteanna (5)
Freagraí ó Béal (6 píosaí cainte)
I am revisiting an issue I first raised with the Minister in June 2014 and again in February 2015. I wish to get a sense of the Minister's plan to strengthen the performance of the criminal justice system to tackle white collar crime. Citizens have been disillusioned in recent years because they see people going to prison for not paying small fines while those who are responsible for bankrupting the State seem to be getting away scot free. There seems to be a difference of emphasis. What is the Minister going to do about it?
Early in its term of office the Government enacted new legislation in the Criminal Justice Act 2011 which was an important step forward in our response to this form of criminality. Its main purpose is to address delays in the prosecution and investigation of complex white collar crime, about which there was much concern, by improving certain important procedural matters and strengthening Garda investigative powers. Another recent provision is Part 5 of the Courts and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 which allows for the selection of additional jurors for longer trials, such as those involving complex financial matters where jurors might become unavailable due to the length of the proceedings. That is an important change.
Forthcoming legislation, which is close to being finalised, is the criminal justice (corruption) Bill. The Bill is also intended to enhance the ability of the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, to bring prosecutions relating to corruption. I am advised that An Garda Síochána continues to develop strategies aimed at targeting, dismantling and disrupting criminal networks, utilising advanced analytical and intelligence methodology. The use of the powers in the Criminal Justice Act 2011, as well as proceeds of crime legislation and the powers of the Criminal Assets Bureau, are very important in this context. I published a report of their work three weeks ago which shows how many white collar criminal enterprises are being tackled by the Criminal Assets Bureau. Other countries are now copying that initiative which was undertaken some years ago. The Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation, GBFI, works closely with the Criminal Assets Bureau.
The Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, ODCE, the Competition Authority and the GBFI all work together. The major banking investigations which have been undertaken in recent years illustrate the close working relationship between An Garda Síochána and the ODCE across multiple strands of very complex investigations. People are frustrated at the length of time criminal trials can take, but a number of new legislative initiatives are targeted at trying to ensure there are no undue delays.
I am mindful that what the recent Garda Inspectorate report said about the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation is very worrying. It said the GBFI was struggling to cope with the scale of the number of cases brought before it and recommended change in respect of the bureau.
In 2014, Remy Farrell, SC, heavily criticised the lack of resources available to the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation and the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement. Those offices faced significant cuts. The response of the State, which was literally bankrupt because of the reckless behaviour of white collar criminals and which was facilitated by poor regulation among other issues, was to cut funding to the very agencies tasked with ensuring that did not happen again. Substantial cuts in funding were made to all those bodies. Will the Minister outline the investment that has been made in those bodies considering that, as we speak, the Garda Inspectorate report indicated they are struggling to cope?
Deputy Mac Lochlainn will appreciate that the allocation of resources to particular investigations or specialist units such as the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation mentioned by him is a matter for the Garda Commissioner. The truth is there has been underinvestment - there is no doubt about that - because the country was bankrupt. We are now in a different situation and we must continue to invest in An Garda Síochána. I have no doubt further investment will be needed in the areas highlighted by the Deputy in the question. Having just returned from the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting that I attended on Monday, I am also in no doubt that we will require further and ongoing investment in security and the issues that arise in terms of border control because of the two significant issues with which Europe is currently grappling, namely, the terrorist threat and the increase in migration and the number of refugees crossing Europe. The Deputy will have seen the reports on the threat to Europe from ISIS. The two issues should not be confused but there are some connections.
I cannot think of any other state in the world that was literally bankrupted by the behaviour of white collar corruption and criminality, where the people were so outraged, and where funding was subsequently cut to the very bodies which are at the front line and supposed to be tackling that. In 2014, three years into the Government's term of office, Remy Farrell, one of the most eminent senior counsel in terms of tackling such criminality in the State, said there was never a better time to be a white collar criminal.
One of the proposals put to the Minister in 2014 and 2015 was from the columnist and respected commentator, Elaine Byrne. She proposed having an independent audit of the capacity of the oversight agencies to do their job, namely, the Criminal Assets Bureau, the ODCE, the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigations, the Central Bank, the Revenue Commissioners, the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, NBCI, and the Competition Authority. She suggested overarching oversight of all those bodies would best be provided by An Garda Síochána to ensure they acted in a joined-up manner. Has the Minister taken on board Elaine Byrne's recommendation and what will she do to address two issues, namely, the capacity of those bodies to do their job, which would be established by means of an independent audit, and the way they are resourced? I raise the matter because I do not believe the issue has been addressed. It has been the biggest issue in the criminal justice system and has been the biggest failure of the Government. I raise the matter in the last days of this Dáil to see whether the Minister can give an assurance that the situation will improve in the future.
I do not accept what Deputy Mac Lochlainn said. In fact, it is clear the Government has put more resources into the more efficient management and ability of An Garda Síochána to tackle criminal activity than other Governments in recent years. At the height of the Celtic tiger, we did not have the kind of investment in ICT that was clearly needed and, as I have said, it was outlined in those reports from the Garda Inspectorate.
The Government has set about supporting An Garda Síochána and has not just spoken about, but has actually made the investment so that all the important issues the Deputy has raised can be managed more effectively.
The enormous complexity for regulators and enforcement agencies internationally in addressing the multifaceted nature of the crimes the Deputy mentioned is widely acknowledged. There is developing experience here. The Law Reform Commission's work on regulatory enforcement and corporate offences, which is an important initiative, will guide future legislation. There is considerable engagement between the specialist bureaux and the other bodies, including the Criminal Assets Bureau, as the Deputy mentioned, and the Office of Corporate Enforcement. The success of that co-operation is evident from recent convictions for breaches of the Companies Act.