Maurice Hayes (Independent)

I came here today to welcome the Bill and commend the work of Senator O'Toole. I regret that he is leaving the Chamber because I was going to say something about him and the committee of which he was a member. I am in a bit of a quandary because he has described this legislation as a non-negotiable document. If that is the case, why it is before the House and why will there be a Committee Stage debate? Such a comment seriously questions the role of the Oireachtas in this regard. I would not attribute such sentiments to the Senator but if such a comment had been made by anybody else, I would regard it as slightly arrogant for somebody to say we do not have a role in this matter. I have often been a member or head of a committee which has made reports such as this. One does ones best, tries to get a meeting of minds and, so far as possible, a consensus but at the end of the day it is for this and the other House to decide in this regard.

I have a number of declarations of interest to make. I am a director of Independent News and Media, Regtel and the Ireland Fund. The first is a large international company, the second a small regulatory body and the third a charity. It might be worthwhile discouraging charities and such bodies from taking on company status. They only clutter up the Companies Office and the work of a body such as this. This debate points to the need for a decent regulatory system for charities and such bodies. The current system brings them into the ambit of procedures with which they do not need to be involved.

I support what Senator Leyden said to the extent that the auditing profession should be more represented than it is on the proposed body. One needs to bring the profession along. I am not a member of it but we need the general support that would bring. If one considers this body in the context of bodies in other professions, it might be advisable to reconsider this matter.

I thought it would be helpful if I spoke about my experience as a non-executive independent director – not because this is where the issue pinches me, but because of the importance of independent non-executive directors. I take seriously the role of protector of shareholders, particularly small shareholders. They are not necessarily always represented by large institutional investors who have the capacity to influence customs in a way that does not always suit small individual investors. That is part of my job, which is also to see that the executives do their job and are compliant with the law in all respects with regard to accounting so that the company is run properly.