Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the very co-operative manner in which Deputy O'Reilly engaged with the whole process on Committee Stage. I welcomed the amendment at that time and the spirit in which it was made. I have no doubt the Deputy wants to enhance the disclosure of information relating to the commission of offences under the Companies Act 2014 between the Central Bank and the corporate enforcement authority and that is the principal that underpins her amendment.

As I said on Committee Stage, the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, ODCE, and the Central Bank already have a memorandum of understanding which allows each body to refer information to one another where they are satisfied that such information is relevant to their counterparts remit. The grounding legislation in this case is that of the Central Bank. This will continue to be the grounding legislation for the new authority. I undertook to get the views of the Department of Finance and the Central Bank on the Deputy's proposal and to report back. Following consultation with the Department of Finance and the Central Bank, their view and concern was the proposed amendment would have unintended consequences.

Section 33(a)(k) of the Central Bank Act 1942 allows for disclosure of information between the two bodies, but it prohibits certain disclosures as required by EU law. Section 99(4)(q) states that disclosure must take place notwithstanding any other law. This means that if accepted the sections in each Act would contradict one another and cause legal and practical difficulties. Perhaps more importantly, I am assured the current legislative provision already allows for the exchange of information between the two bodies. The amendment would not enhance the current arrangements and would, unfortunately, have unintended consequences. I have no doubt neither the Deputy or I want that. Therefore, I cannot accept the amendment, but am glad to have the opportunity to explore it further and report back to the Deputy on the engagement we had subsequent to her raising it with me on Committee Stage.

See this speech in context