Written question asked by Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party) on Wednesday, 18 January 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 January 2006. It was answered by Shaun Woodward (Labour) on Tuesday, 24 January 2006 on behalf of the Northern Ireland Office.

Organised Crime

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his assessment is of the extent of Provisional IRA involvement in organised crime in Northern Ireland.

Answer: There have been significant changes in PIRA activity, including in the area of criminality, since the July statement. However, there are complex assessments to be made to distinguish between criminality by individual PIRA members for their own gain and criminality carried out by PIRA members which is authorised by the organisation.It is the job of the Independent Monitoring Commission to comment on these issues and to consider whether PIRA have met the commitments they have made to end all activity, including involvement in organised crime. I look forward to receiving the Commission's forthcoming report, and successive reports, to assess progress in this area.The Government remains fully committed to tackling organised crime in Northern Ireland, from whatever source.

Secondary information