Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I read out those details which were given by the public service because I want to let people know the facts of what people are entitled to under the law. With regard to the Duffy Cahill report, as I said, the Government is seeking to implement a whole series of measures and is reviewing whether the current legal provisions surrounding collective redundancies and the liquidation of companies protect the workers' rights effectively. It is reviewing the Companies Act 2014 with a view to addressing the practice of trading entities splitting their operations between trading and property. I am aware that is more relevant to the Clearys case but it will have a result where any trading company is trying to separate out its operations. We will examine the legal provision that pertains to any sale of a connected party following the insolvency of a company, including who can object and allow grounds for it.

Recently, I understand the Irish Congress of Trade Unions allowed two further proposals it believes will assist workers where a collective agreement is in place. The Government is committed to ensuring those proposals are considered and this will meaningfully involve engagement with all stakeholders. We cannot, however, say to an auditor that because we are working with it on some other line of business we will not pay it or use it unless it treats stock in a certain way. That would be completely outside the law.

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