Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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391. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide for 2012 the total number of six monthly filings at the Companies Registration Office in respect of companies that are in receivership; and of that total, the number that were delivered later than the statutory deadline. [24488/13]

Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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393. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide for 2012 the total number of six monthly filings at the Companies Registration Office in respect of companies that are in receivership; and of that total, the number that were incomplete when originally filed. [24490/13]

Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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395. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide in respect of 2012 an analysis by name of receiver the number of six monthly filings at the Companies Registration Office in respect of companies that are in receivership that were delivered later than the statutory deadline; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24492/13]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 391, 393 and 395 together.

The following Table sets out the information sought by the Deputy:

The CRO is the central repository of public statutory information on Irish companies and business names. The CRO organises the data that it receives by company name and registered number and makes this information searchable and accessible to the public on its website via either the name or number data-field. The data is not stored nor indexed according to “receiver appointed” or any other individuals or officers associated with a company. It is, therefore, not possible to list the names of individual receivers as the database is not searchable in this way.

In addition, it is not possible to readily extract statistics on the number of six monthly abstracts filed in respect of companies in receivership, that were incomplete (returned to the presenter for correction) on first submission to the CRO.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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392. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the avenues available to former business owners whose businesses are now in receivership and who are seeking information about the affairs of the company that would ordinarily be produced on the six monthly filing by the receiver but which has not been filed. [24489/13]

Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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394. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide an assessment of the damage to good corporate governance and transparency that is done by receivers who fail to file six monthly filings at the Companies Registration Office in respect of companies that are in receivership. [24491/13]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 392 and 394 together.

The Companies Acts set out the powers and duties of receivers. There is an obligation on receivers to comply with the legislative provisions applicable to them. Sections 319 and 321 of the Companies Act 1963 provide that a receiver must send to the Registrar of Companies an abstract detailing the assets of the company of which he has taken possession, their estimated value, the proceeds of sale of any such assets and of his receipts and payments for each six months period following his appointment. If a receiver makes default in complying with Section 319, or if applicable Section 321, he is guilty of an offence. The offence may be prosecuted summarily or on indictment and the penalties are set out in Section 145 of the Companies Act 1990, as amended.

From information contained in my reply today to the Deputy’s Dail question in relation to numbers of filings of six-monthly abstracts in 2012, it would appear that receivers do not fail to file the required abstracts, but many fail to file them within the statutory deadline. While non-compliance with a statutory deadline is not desirable, the Companies Registration Office (CRO) is not in a position to prosecute every case of late filing of statutory submissions. The CRO prioritises its limited enforcement resources towards the key compliance measure of securing the filing of Section 125 annual returns and financial statements by companies.

Section 322 (1) (a) and (2) of the Companies Act 1963 provide that if a receiver fails to file returns, accounts or other documents which he is required to do by law, and fails within 14 days of the serving of a notice requiring him to do so, a creditor or member or the registrar of companies may apply to the court for an order directing the receiver to make good the default within such period as may be specified in the order. There is no provision applicable to a former business owner who is not a member or creditor. Section 322 (3) provides that this does not affect the operation of any other enactment imposing penalties on receivers for similar statutory breaches to those set out in subsection (1).