Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Legislation to establish the new corporate enforcement authority is currently before the Houses. The Companies (Corporate Enforcement Authority) Bill 2021 was published on 3 September. Second and Committee Stages have been completed in the Dáil, and Report Stage is scheduled for 10 November. Operational arrangements for the transition to an agency continue to advance in parallel, with progress being overseen by a steering group of officials from the Department and the ODCE.

The Government's objective, with the support of the Houses, is to enact the legislation as soon as possible with a view to the establishment of the agency in January 2022.

The legislation, when enacted, will be a milestone in the area of corporate enforcement in Ireland. With new technology and more sophisticated economic crime, it is more important than ever to have a well-resourced, stand-alone agency to identify those not complying with company law. The Bill provides the corporate enforcement authority with more autonomy, particularly the ability to recruit those with the required skills and expertise. Having the autonomy to recruit those with specialist skills and expertise will be essential to ensuring the continued capacity of the authority to fulfil its mandate. The authority will have a structure similar to that of a commission, with a chairperson assisted by other members, who may have delegated responsibilities for other specific functions. The Bill provides for flexibility of up to three full-time members, including the chairperson. This is designed to enable the new authority to bring in expertise to meet the differing demands pertaining to its remit, and it will enhance the capacity of the authority to investigate multiple and more complex investigations in parallel.

The Bill invests the new authority with all the same functions and powers that the ODCE currently has, with some modifications to meet the differing demands of its remit, which includes investigation, prosecution, supervision and advocacy roles. These functions include encouraging compliance with the Companies Act 2014; investigation of suspected offences, including through the appointment of inspectors; criminal investigation and prosecution; and civil enforcement of the obligations, standards and procedures to which companies and their officers are subject under the 2014 Act. Furthermore, the Garda members of the new authority have, and will continue to have, all the powers of An Garda Síochána.

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