Results 1,241-1,260 of 1,683 for speaker:Derek McDowell

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: Unlike Senator O'Toole and not having been a member of the audit review group, I still do not understand the cogent argument against simply requiring a person to be a member of one of the groups in order to be called an accountant. Can the Minister of State indicate the number calling themselves accountants who are not qualified in what we consider to be the normal way? I know of some myself...

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: How commonplace is this?

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: How commonplace is it?

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: On a point of clarification, section 6 sets out the membership of the company, because this is a company limited by guarantee. There are a dozen or so bodies, mostly commercial bodies or State bodies, which are members of the company.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: I am genuinely confused about the relationship between sections 6 and 11. Section 6 sets out the eight designated bodies and then there is a catch-all which refers to the prescribed bodies which are basically the accountancy bodies. Section 11 sets out the composition of the board, which is two persons nominated jointly by agreement by the prescribed accountancy bodies, two persons nominated...

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: It sets out the membership of the company.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: Section 11 sets out the membership of the board. The membership of the board includes a representative of each of the designated bodies referred to in section 6, of which there are currently eight, plus the prescribed bodies which are the accountancy profession representatives. It totals eight plus two nominated by the Minister and two nominated by the prescribed bodies.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: Is the Minister of State increasing it by one?

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: I wish to reiterate the earlier point I made. The consumer protection element of the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority, IFRSA, should be represented on the board. While it is right to say that most clients of accountancy are likely to be corporate bodies and represented by one of the designated bodies in section 6, there are also individuals who might require separate...

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: I do not see why it does not. If we are looking to regulate the accountancy bodies effectively and to ensure their disciplinary procedures are operated in the interests of consumers—

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: We are giving a specific power to the supervisory body to investigate whether a member of the public or a company was properly treated by an accountant. There is clearly a strong consumer protection element in the Bill which should be reflected on the board.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: Is one not still stuck with the cap of 15 members?

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: A later amendment, which we have already discussed, states that the prescribed bodies must agree among themselves who should be their representatives. If they do not do so, it would be wise to provide that the Minister will make the appointments instead. It would not surprise me if there was a failure to agree on the representatives. I am trying to be helpful.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: What if they do not agree? It It seems that a default mechanism appointment is required if there is no agreement among the six bodies that exist at present.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: I am not entirely clear on section 8. It gives extremely wide-ranging powers to the authority to prescribe what should be the accountancy bodies' regulatory and disciplinary procedure. I know that the Institute of Chartered Accountants, which is the largest of the accountancy bodies, has an elaborate disciplinary procedure. Does the Minister of State intend to endorse the disciplinary...

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: The articles of association of the company have to be set up with the consent of the Minister. I accept that this does not give him direct power to set out what should be the disciplinary procedure. Does the Minister of State anticipate that the existing procedures will be endorsed or does he expect radical changes? Obviously, it would be useful for us to know that.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: Deputy Michael Ahern is the Minister of State. He should anticipate everything.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: The reason I am making this point is that other parts of the Bill presume that the disciplinary procedures that are currently in place, including the disciplinary committee and the appeal mechanism, such as it is, will continue to operate. That is why I want clarification on whether it is anticipated that these procedures will remain in place.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: It can do almost anything. It can go to any of the prescribed bodies and tear up its existing disciplinary rules or constitution or refuse to recognise it.

Seanad: Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (28 May 2003)

Derek McDowell: I am not objecting to that. I believe it is reasonable.