Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am aware of the critique of the impact of share options and how they can assess the performance of companies and senior executives. The companies that we want to be inside the parameters of this scheme are smaller and indigenous ones that are competing with large companies for employees. The change we are making in allowing buy-backs to operate is a consequence of the reality that for many of the companies that will be participating in the scheme, there are no liquid share markets where employees can easily dispose of the shares. Some of the criticism the Deputy is referring to assumes there are markets in which shares are being traded and easily disposed of. The issue we are seeking to address is where the buy-back would be done by the company itself and where there would not be a stock market in which these shares are being easily traded. While that risk is there, it is small for this scheme. The intention here is that it is not senior executives who are benefiting from this with shares that are easily sold.