Agency needs help to fight corruption

HONEST, decent citizens can be forgiven for being perplexed by the State’s puzzling approach to corporate corruption.

As witnessed time and again in the courts, perpetrators of white collar crime are usually rapped on the knuckles while those less privileged can end up behind bars on far less serious charges.

In an example of this skewed system, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has told the Director of Corporate Enforcement, Paul Appleby, to ‘wait his turn’ to get extra staff.

This despite the fact that in 2005, the office was seeking evidence to bring enforcement actions in more than 500 cases, most of them criminal. Delays meant a substantial number would not be capable of investigation. Set up to tackle a prevailing culture of non-compliance with company law, the agency has helped to underpin Ireland's reputation as a good place to do business.

The Government’s reaction to requests for extra investigators to put corporate crime under the microscope is mind boggling. The agency must get the staff it needs to target corporate crime aggressively, effectively, and independently.