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

I thank Deputy O’Reilly. Again, I will try to give her some reassurance. We will see how that goes. As I explained on Committee Stage, this section is specifically a requirement of EU law. It transposes Article 30(c)(ii) of the EU audit directive, practically word for word. Failure to re-enact these provisions would mean that Ireland would be in breach of its EU obligations. As the Deputy is aware, this section provides for certain circumstances in which administrative sanctions imposed on a company director by the authority may be published anonymously. The administrative sanctions in question in this chapter of the Bill relate to sections where a director is found to have contributed to breaches of EU audit rules only. I want to be clear that these provisions do not extend beyond these breaches into the broader provisions of the Companies Act 2014. I want to also be clear that it is a decision entirely at the discretion of the authority as to whether it decides to publish the sanctions anonymously. However, it is a principle of natural justice that a director who is subject to a sanction can seek to make a case that the publication of that sanction would be disproportionate in some way. Nonetheless, there are many precedents for the publication of directors’ details under the umbrella of the Companies Act 2014, such as in the case of restriction and disqualification of directors. While I cannot pre-empt a decision of the authority, which is independent in its functions, I can say with confidence that the default position in law and in practice should be that sanctions imposed under this chapter of the Bill are published. As a case in point, to date, there have been no sanctions on directors under these sections. However, to provide examples, the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority, IAASA, has published sanctions in full on its website under equivalent EU rules in relation to a statutory auditor and audit firm. Ultimately, as I said, failure to enact these provisions would mean that Ireland would be in breach of its EU obligations. For that reason, I cannot accept the amendment. I hope that I have clarified for the Deputies the purposes of the sections.

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