Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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I move amendment No. 6:

In page 8, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following: “Report on employee share ownership trusts

4. The Minister shall, within 12 months of the passing of this Act, lay a report before Dáil Éireann on any proposals to amend Chapter 2 of Part 17 and Schedule 12 of the Principal Act, relating to employee share ownership trusts, so as to facilitate the establishment of a greater number of such trusts and their smooth and efficient functioning.”

This amendment proposes some changes to the policy environment in which employee share ownership trusts operate and, simply put, seeks a report that would lead to some policy evolution in that area. I believe it is an area that does need some attention. There have been significant changes to that policy area, for example, in the UK since 2014 in respect of the particular scheme they have in place there, which the Minister and officials in his Department might be familiar with. They introduced significant changes in the corporation tax regime as it applies to employees who are disposing of shares they have based on their employment in an organisation. It is a very underdeveloped area in Ireland and we know the reality is that of the number of businesses that are sold in Ireland every day, very few end up being owned on a majority basis by their employees. The Minister knows only too well that we have a disproportionate reliance in terms of successfully operated companies in Ireland of scale that are in the foreign direct investment side of the economy.