David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes, and I thank Dr. McFadden. It shone a light on what is happening in the corporate world when he said there were vast numbers of searches happening. Dr. McFadden can correct me if I am wrong, but I understand that there are fees for searches and I am just curious about the income that is generated. He said there is no profit and they just cover the cost, which is fair enough. However, he also said, if I understood him correctly, that there are companies that get packages of information and then sell it on, presumably at a profit for them. We know that data is the new gold or oil, and this is proof of that again. The data the CRO has is extremely valuable to many companies. It is interesting, and Dr. McFadden has answered my question.

I have a final question for either or both of the witnesses. They mentioned the number of companies that have filed and registered with the office. Can they say whether there has been a reduction or an increase in the number of companies year on year and how many companies have failed and deregistered because of that?