Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 6:

In page 27, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following:

“(6A) A meeting under this section—

(a) need not be held at a physical venue but may be held wholly or partly by the use of electronic communications technology as long as all members and creditors have a reasonable opportunity to participate in the meeting,

(b) a process adviser may provide for participation in a meeting by providing or facilitating, for that purpose, the use of electronic communications technology, including a mechanism for casting votes by members and creditors, whether before or during the meeting,

(c) the use of electronic communications technology pursuant to this section may be made subject only to such requirements or restrictions put in place by the process adviser as are necessary to ensure the identification of attendees and the security of the electronic communications technology, to the extent that such requirements or restrictions are proportionate to the achievement of those objectives,

(d) a process adviser shall inform members and creditors, before the meeting, of any requirements or restrictions which he or she has put in place,

(e) where a meeting is held using electronic communications technology for participation in a meeting the process adviser shall ensure, as far as practicable, that such technology—

(i) provides for the security of any electronic communications by members and creditors,

(ii) minimises the risk of data corruption and unauthorised access, and

(iii) provides certainty as to the source of the electronic communications,

(f) in the case of any failure or disruption of such technology, that failure or disruption is remedied as soon as practicable,

(g) such technology enables members and creditors to—

(i) hear what is said by the process adviser and any member or creditor who speaks at the meeting, and

(ii) speak and submit questions and comments during the meeting to the process adviser,

(h) any temporary failure or disruption of electronic communications technology shall not invalidate the meeting or any proceedings relating to the meeting, unless such failure or disruption is attributable to a wilful act.”.

This is a fairly straightforward amendment. I welcome the fact that the Bill seeks to place virtual annual general meetings, AGMs, on a permanent statutory footing. As much as we are all looking forward to non-virtual meetings in the very near future, such virtual meetings have become a very important part of discussions and engagements. Notwithstanding the current situation with regard to Covid, allowing for meetings as part of the consultation process and other engagements to take place virtually, and putting this on a statutory footing, would be very beneficial. I welcome the Minister of State's views in that regard. I am not sure the amendment will necessarily cover the scale and breadth of what is required. There may be knock-on consequences with which it does not deal. I am happy to work and engage with the Minister of State in that regard. For ease and to make sure as many people as possible are engaged in the process, the use of technology would be very welcome. If it is not possible to accept this amendment, perhaps we will have an engagement on the matter at some stage in the future because there is merit in including virtual meetings as part of this.

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