Proceeds of Crime and Related Matters Bill 2025: Second Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2026-04-15
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Sharon Keogan (IND), Industrial and Commercial Panel

The Minister is very welcome. To be quite honest, I am disappointed that this is not on full and Final Stage today. For far too long, criminals in this country, particularly the drug criminals, have been getting away with far too much. I am delighted to see that the Minister is trying to expedite the sale of properties belonging to criminals and drug barons in this country. Those properties can be left to rot for years, as the Minister knows. Let us take them off them, get them sold and put them back into good use. I am delighted. I am only disappointed that it is not coming quickly enough and is not going through the Houses to Final Stage today.
The proceeds of crime funding initiative was led by an Independent councillor in County Louth. All the Independent councillors throughout this country called for that way back in 2021. It was led by Councillor Paddy McQuillan. Thankfully, the Minister at the time, Helen McEntee, took that on board. The funding the Minister just announced, and which was announced previously over the last couple of years, will make a massive difference. It has grown this year. It started at €2 million and, this year, I think it is at €4 million. It has grown, but how do we build safer communities? We can only do that in collaboration with An Garda Síochána. I am literally just off the phone to an inspector in my area, before I came up here, about property marking, of all things. The citizens of Ireland have a great relationship with our gardaí. They are the cornerstone of keeping us safe in our communities, day in day out.
I was a bit disappointed with what happened last week. I have been a great champion of the Minister's since he took office. I was disappointed. We have a little rebuilding to do now in relation to our Garda Síochána and our citizens. I will fully support the gardaí to do their job and keep our citizens safe. I will do that 24-7. I will fully support the Minister in this Bill, which cannot come quickly enough, as far as I am concerned. I thank the Minister for introducing this Bill to the House today.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-04-15/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:48+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-15