Martin Conway (Fine Gael)

I listened carefully to the Minister. Going from 12 to five years is a significant improvement. I also welcome the news that we are likely to see the insolvency Bill this side of Christmas. That is significant, although I realise it is part of our commitment under the EU-IMF agreement.

Company law in this country is not up to standard or fit for purpose. In the last two years numerous companies have gone into examinership. Some of them had legitimate reasons for doing so and the examinership has helped to re-establish their business model, so they have emerged from it successfully. I also believe that if somebody goes into examinership, emerges from it in a couple of years and is in a position to honour the debts that existed prior to that, this should be considered. I agree with the Minister that we must be careful to get the balance right.

In the present climate it is extremely important to initiate job creation and promote entrepreneurship. However, the State is borrowing €18 billion per year and it must be in a position to meet its commitments in that regard. We cannot simply walk away from debt willy-nilly. The insolvency legislation is prudent and will make a huge difference in terms of how we do business not just with regard to bankruptcy but also company law in general. I look forward to it. For the sake of the two years and given the legislation that is due to be introduced, I hope the amendment will not be pressed.