Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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274. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on a submission by an organisation (details supplied) with regard to the transposition of the EU Trade Secrets Directive and the Protected Disclosures Act 2014. [27421/18]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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EU Directive 2016/943 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure has been transposed by way of S.I. No. 188 of 2018 which was laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas on 13 June 2018.  The Regulations, made under the 1972 European Communities Act, provide for civil redress measures and remedies in the event a trade secret is unlawfully acquired, used or disclosed.

During the course of my Department's transposition of the Directive, it received the submission referred to by the Deputy.  Both my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, which sponsored the Protected Disclosures legislation, obtained legal advice to the effect the Directive imposes a requirement of a subjective public interest test and that the transposing legislation should amend the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 by adding a requirement that a "protected disclosure" coming within Article 5 (b) of the Directive i.e. a disclosure involving revealing misconduct, wrongdoing or illegal activity, must be made for the purpose of protecting the public interest.  Accordingly the S.I. contains such an amendment so that Ireland achieves a full transposition of the Directive.