Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The amendments from Deputy Tóibín and Deputy Calleary call for all retailers defined as relevant grocery goods undertakings to be obliged to disclose their profits in the Irish market. These proposed amendments are stand-alone provisions and are not related to the regulations that I, as Minister, may make to regulate certain practices in the grocery goods sector. As I have stated in the House previously, companies operating in Ireland are free to establish and organise themselves in the most suitable form to promote and run their businesses, provided that they comply fully with relevant national and EU legislation, including relevant legislation on the content of financial statements.

The requirements regarding the preparation of publication of the financial statements of limited companies and groups are determined by the first, fourth and seventh EU company law directives and by Regulation (EC) No. 1606/2002 and international financial reporting standards adopted by the EU under its provisions. These requirements are largely reflected in the Companies Act 1963, the Companies (Amendment) Act 1986 and the European Communities (Company: Group Accounts) Regulations, 1992, as amended. The equivalent requirements apply throughout the European Union. The fourth and seventh directives have been replaced by a new accounting directive, Directive No. 2013/34/EU, which is required to be transposed by July 2015. The requirements concerning the accounts of unlimited companies are governed by domestic legislation.

The extent to which profits are or are not disclosed is of general application and is not determined on the basis of the sector in which a company or group operates. The requirements under company law are essentially the same for companies or groups that operate supermarkets as for companies or groups active in any other sector of the economy. I consider that a disclosure regime targeting a specific sector could be viewed as disproportionate and discriminatory and could have negative consequences in terms of business costs and in attracting foreign direct investment. Thus, I am not in a position to accept the amendments on this issue.