Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 April 2024
22. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Justice the additional measures, if any, she will introduce to deal with the scourge of illegal drugs throughout the country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17829/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to tackle drug dealing and associated criminal behaviour, including by organised crime groups.
The unprecedented allocation of over €2.35 billion for 2024 to An Garda Síochána demonstrates the Government's commitment to ensuring An Garda Síochána has provision for the equipment, technology, facilities, fleet and personnel it needs to carry out its vital policing work. This funding has enabled the Garda Commissioner to assign extra resources to the specialist units involved in tackling organised crime.
These include the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (GNDOCB), the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Armed Support Unit and the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB). Between 2019 and 2022, over €160m in drugs have been seized by the Gardaí.
The Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau leads in tackling all forms of drug trafficking and the supply of illicit drugs in Ireland. Collaboration at an inter-agency and international level remain key in tackling this issue. Given the global nature of the drugs trade, international law enforcement co-operation remains a key element in the overall response.
An Garda Síochána has strong and strategic partnerships in place at international level targeting drug trafficking, including working closely with relevant law enforcement agencies such as INTERPOL and Europol and participating in the Maritime Analysis Operations Centre for Narcotics (MAOC-N) based in Lisbon.
An example of the success of this cooperation in February, when Gardaí along with Revenue Officers seized 546kg of a synthetic drug, with an estimated value of €32.8 million, in Cork Port. The detention of the MV Matthew in Cork last year, which saw the seizure of approximately €157 million worth of drugs is a further example. These seizures, and many smaller ones that do not make the headlines, demonstrates the excellent work of Gardaí and their partner agencies at disrupting the supply of drugs into the country.
At a local level, An Garda Síochána continues to target those involved in the sale and supply of illegal drugs through Operation Tara. Recent successes of Operation Tara include the seizure of cannabis plants and cannabis herb with an estimated value of €700,000 in County Roscommon on 9 April. On 10 April, also in County Roscommon, €180,000 worth of suspected cannabis plants were seized during a search operation in Fairymount, County Roscommon.
The Government is committed to limiting access to illegal drugs to the greatest extent possible and are committed to taking a number of direct actions to tackle this, including by:
• Increasing the maximum sentence for conspiracy to murder from 10 years to life in prison to tackle those who direct gangland and drug related crime
• Introducing new legislation which will criminalise the grooming of children into a life of crime
• Supporting the roll-out of Greentown, a pilot programme which is seeking to break the link between the gangs and the children they try to recruit
Earlier this year, I also announced plans to introduce legislation to further strengthen the State’s ability to seize criminal assets. The Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Bill 2024 will make significant changes to the Proceeds of Crime Act to strengthen the ability of the Criminal Assets Bureau to target the proceeds of crime and will speed up the process to dispose of the asset for the benefit of the State.
The Criminal Assets Bureau continues to target the assets, wherever situated, of persons which derive or are suspected to derive, directly or indirectly, from criminal conduct. Since its inception, the Bureau has been at the forefront of fighting organised crime in Ireland, disrupting the activities of criminal gangs through the removal of their ill-gotten gains and has been recognised as a world leader in asset investigations, tracing and forfeiture.
