Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and everyone in this Chamber for their kind words of congratulations but also of welcome to Seanad Éireann. Most importantly, I thank them for their collaboration with this Bill because it is very important.

Senator Seery Kearney brings many skills and expertise in this exact field to the Chamber and I very much appreciate her input and contribution as we continue to shape this legislation. She had two specific asks, which I will deal with in a moment.

Senator Crowe eloquently explained the process of the action plan, the progress that has happened and why that has been so beneficial for workers. I appreciate him putting that on the record. He spoke, in particular, about Debenhams and how constituents of his were affected by it. I fully acknowledge the impact on the Debenhams workers who were made redundant early in the pandemic. The Government always sought to ensure that the concerns of these workers were heard and that the State's welfare, employment and training services responded to their needs.

The Government extends that same responsiveness to all employees facing the difficult prospect of redundancy. The Social Insurance Fund provides a safety net for employees to ensure that they receive statutory redundancy and other wage-related entitlements in situations where the employer cannot pay due to insolvency. These rights were honoured by the State in the case of Debenhams workers at a cost of more than €13 million. In recognition of the exceptional circumstances of that case, in particular, as reflected in the report by the chair of the Labour Court, the Government also provided an additional €3 million fund to support career guidance, training, education and pre-retirement planning for the former Debenhams workers.

As mentioned by Senator Garvey, the vast majority of directors operate honestly and do the right thing. It is important that we acknowledge that. The Senator also spoke of the need to future-proof Ireland and our talented workers, who may find themselves in these understandably stressful situations. I very much feel that this Bill prioritises upskilling people after insolvency and I appreciate what the Senator said about apprentices who I fully value. I completely agree with the Senator that they are key to solving Ireland's housing crisis. I am pleased to confirm that apprentices are covered by this Bill.

On the employment law review group work programme, which she specifically inquired about, we certainly will consult on that and are interested in hearing her views in that regard. That goes for anybody across the Chamber also.

Senator Joe O'Reilly also has a particular interest in apprentices so I hope that he is pleased that the Bill covers that area. He used some fantastic words to describe this Bill such as "modernising", "involving", "dynamic" and "agility" and that is very much what we are trying to achieve in this. We are very much trying to ensure that we are future-proofing companies as we go forward. The strategic embrace of technology, as he said, is very important. He specifically queried whether union representatives would be on the ELRG. I confirm that there will be employer and employee representatives to provide advice but ultimately this will be an expert advisory group and it is a separate entity to the Labour Employer Economic Forum, LEEF. LEEF will continue to remain our social dialogue platform which is absolutely essential.

The Bill is of great importance when we are beginning to see insolvency figures revert to pre-pandemic levels, as expected in an entrepreneurial society. It amends employment, redundancy and company-related laws in a meaningful way.

It is important to remember that workers already have robust legislative protections and safeguards as employees under employment law and also as creditors under the Companies Act. The Bill will further benefit workers of insolvent employers in a number of ways. First, it will further improve awareness and increase transparency for employees of insolvent employers. It will improve access to the mechanisms, which can increase the pool of assets available for creditors and will also provide for the statutory establishment of the ELRG. That will ensure that our suite of employment and redundancy law remains robust and fit for purpose in what we all agree is a rapidly changing world of work.

This legislation is an integral part of the Government's commitment to supporting both employees and businesses in a time of unprecedented change. It is significant legislation that has been developed following several different reports, stakeholder engagements and consultation with the social partners.

I thank members of the Company Law Review Group for their extensive work on this matter and, indeed, their ongoing review of other areas of company law. I also thank the Attorney General's office and those in various Departments who have worked cross-departmentally with my officials on this Bill. My officials have done a tremendous amount of work and I would very much like to thank them. I finally thank those Members who have participated in this debate and I look forward to Committee Stage when we can debate these issues in greater detail.