International Crime (Hansard, 18 January 1999)

§ 6. Mr. Jim Cunningham (coventry, South)
What recent discussions he has held with his European counterparts on reducing serious international crime. [64350]

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Kate Hoey)
My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and I discussed co-operation in reducing international crime with our European Union counterparts at the meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 3 December. International crime issues have also formed part of the agenda for meetings that my 556 right hon. Friend and I have had in the past three months with the German Ministers of the Interior and of Justice, the Austrian Minister of the Interior and the French Minister of Justice, and for the meetings that I had with the Hungarian Ministers of the Interior and of Justice during my visit to Budapest in December.

§ Mr. Cunningham
What discussions has my hon. Friend held with the French Minister of the Interior about the high level of smuggling of cigarettes, beer, spirits and drugs? Such smuggling can cause harm in my constituency in Coventry, with many off-licences and newsagents being badly affected.

§ Kate Hoey
As my hon. Friend may know, although the French Minister of the Interior is now back at work, he has been ill for the past few months, during which time on-going discussions were held with his officials. My hon. Friend is right to point out the problems of alcohol and tobacco smuggling: that is a serious criminal activity, which robs decent, honest taxpayers. We are doing more to tackle the problem and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise is implementing tougher policies and better targeting. Those efforts are beginning to work and we shall continue to work closely with the French Government.

§ Mr. John Wilkinson (Ruislip-Northwood)
Does the Minister agree that the organisation of illegal immigration is one of the most serious aspects of international crime within Europe? In that context, will she or her right hon. Friend the Home Secretary hold discussions with European Justice Ministers to ensure that each EU member country deals properly with bogus asylum seekers and illegal immigrants, and that they are dealt with in the first country they reach? If Her Majesty's Government cannot reach an accord on that matter, will the Home Secretary tear up the Dublin convention, which he so rightly criticised?

§ Kate Hoey
It is a pity that the hon. Gentleman did not make those views clear before the previous Government signed the Dublin convention. However, I agree that the problem of gangs organising illegal immigration is very serious. The matter is discussed continually by our European partners and by the accession countries because it is not simply a European Union issue: it affects all of Europe. The Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien), has just returned from a visit to Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia during which precisely those sorts of issues were discussed. It is a serious problem,which we must tackle at source.

§ Mr. Gerald Bermingham (St. Helens, South)
I declare an interest as a practising lawyer. Does the Minister accept that one of the best ways of curbing the smuggling of loose tobacco which is used in hand-rolled cigarettes would be to persuade the Belgian authorities—the Antwerp warehouses supply 70 per cent. of the rolled 557 tobacco available in the United Kingdom—to allow the extradition of Belgian citizens to stand trial on conspiracy charges before the British courts?

§ Kate Hoey
In his usual way, my hon. Friend has made an important point that we shall examine and pursue. We shall clearly do anything that we can to prevent the smuggling of alcohol and tobacco.

§ Mr. Ken Maginnis (Fermanagh and South Tyrone)
In relation to international co-operation, the Minister will be more than familiar with the recent success of the Garda Siochana in intercepting a huge consignment of drugs headed for Northern Ireland, with which were included 16 machine pistols and silencers. Does she recognise that, if there is a diminution in the level of terrorism in Northern Ireland and in Great Britain, the infrastructural and logistical capability will be filled by international terrorists who are involved in the drugs trade? Will the Home Department pay particular attention to encouraging police constabularies in Great Britain to co-operate even more than at present on a day-to-day basis with the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Garda Siochana on that issue?

§ Kate Hoey
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that timely question. It is important to recall the amount of drugs seized and to congratulate the Garda and the RUC on their continued co-operation, which is very good at present. We must obviously extend and improve co-operation within the rest of the United Kingdom, and that is already happening. Terrorism affects everyone and may be a by-product of other organised crime.