Draft financial powers to tackle drug trafficking in Northern Ireland were introduced in the House of Commons yesterday. Under the proposals, contained in the Belfast Agreement, solicitors will be required to reveal whether a suspected person has been a client for certain types of transactions, and banks and all other financial institutions will be obliged to provide information for investigations.
Customs and Excise officers will also be given extended powers to carry out investigations into suspected drug trafficking. More time will be allowed to mount a prosecution, where suspected traffickers have given false information to police officers.