Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Newham stated that his Department sent eight referrals to the ODCE and he indicated that the number will rise. I am sure he well remembers Celtic tiger times when a large number of companies, especially in the services and construction sectors, were falling over, were reimagined and were back in business within a week or two.

We are in similar circumstances with booming construction, albeit restricted at present. There is no doubt that there is a construction boom, and I want to ask about guarding against what happened in the past. How can people who were previously directors of companies come back into new companies following bankruptcy or a very quick liquidation? I ask the witnesses to address that.

I refer to the reference to the amount of data held on individuals and company directors. There is a significant amount of expertise across the SME sector, in particular at director level and among owners and proprietors. Would the witnesses give any thought to inviting directors, if they wish, to list their expertise and ensure it is available online? People can list such information on LinkedIn, etc. Where people are prepared to engage, they could use the portal to try to drill down and find specific expertise small businesses might be looking for and which may be on offer to them.