Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On the report into the shortcomings identified by Judge Alymer, my Department sought the advice of the Attorney General on this document. My Department is considering that advice and it is important that the account is in line with fair procedures, due process and natural justice. I intend to publish the account very shortly.

On the funding of the ODCE, the funding allocation in 2017 was €4.895 million and in 2018 it is €5.057 million. Organisational reforms undertaken by the ODCE since 2012, together with the ongoing recruitment of staff with a variety of specific skills and expertise I outlined, mean that it is well resourced to tackle increasingly complex breaches of company law. As of 10 July, the number of Department staff in place in the ODCE is 38 - that is actual staff and not full time equivalents. In addition, seven gardaí are assigned to the ODCE and, over recent years, 11 professional staff have been recruited to the office to enhance its capability to deal with increasingly complex investigations. I am satisfied that the ODCE has sufficient resources to enable it to carry the important work it does.

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