Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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1. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the recent ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union, which invalidated public access to registers of beneficial ownerships; the way this ruling lines up with the open government approach; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [61192/22]

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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3. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his Department has had any contact with the European Commission or the Court of Justice of the European Union with regard to public access to the register of beneficial ownership; and if so, the details of these discussions. [61194/22]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 3 together.

I am aware of the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union on 22 November 2022, which found to be invalid the provision of the EU anti-money-laundering directive that information on the beneficial ownership of corporate and other legal entities must be provided to the general public.

Policy responsibility in this area rests with the Minister for Finance. Officials from my Department have been liaising with the Department of Finance in relation to the implications of the Court ruling for the Registrar of Beneficial Ownership of Companies and Industrial & Provident Societies (RBO), which operates under the auspices of my Department.

I understand that the Department of Finance has engaged with other Departments affected by the ruling and also with the European Commission and with other Member States. The question of whether any changes are required to domestic legislation is under consideration and will be informed by further analysis and engagement in the coming weeks.

I also understand that a new EU anti-money laundering Directive and Regulation are under discussion and that it is expected that the implications of the Court ruling will be addressed in this context.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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2. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the status of Ireland’s public register of beneficial ownership; and proposed changes to the public nature or operation of the register. [61193/22]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Arising from obligations under the EU Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AML5), the Minister for Finance signed the European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Corporate. Entities) Regulations 2019. These regulations provide for a Registrar of Beneficial Ownership of Companies and Industrial & Provident Societies (RBO) and require companies, registered under the Companies Act 2014; and societies, registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts 1893-2021, to register certain information with the RBO in respect of their beneficial owners.

Access to RBO beneficial ownership information has been available on an unrestricted basis to competent authorities (including An Garda Síochána, the Department of Justice, the Property Services Regulatory Authority, the Law Society of Ireland, the General Council of the Bar of Ireland, designated accountancy bodies). Restricted access has been available to any member of the public and to Designated Persons who form a business relationship with a relevant entity or are taking customer due diligence measures (mostly in financial institutions).

Arising from the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Registrar of Beneficial Ownership took the decision to suspend all access to the Register. This situation is temporary and is necessary in order to facilitate an IT solution which will provide access to the RBO in accordance with the Court ruling. It is expected that access with be restored to competent authorities and designated persons in the coming days with only limited information being available to the general public. The Registrar has been communicating directly with key stakeholders on the current situation.