merrion street

Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton is to draft legislation to ease the regulatory burden on co-operative societies and make it easier to start up and run a co-op as an alternative form of enterprise organisation.

Minister Bruton secured government approval for the move at a recent cabinet meeting and is now pressing ahead with the reforms.The move comes following his recent publication of the Companies Bill, which will drastically reduce red tape on companies and other moves to reduce the burden of government-imposed burdens on business.

Announcing the moves, Minister Bruton commented...

I have consistently said that if we are to get the economy growing and create jobs in Ireland we will have to work hard to reduce business costs. A crucial part of this will be to reduce those costs, which are directly under the control of government.I made a start on this recently with the publication of major reforms to company law, which will make it much easier and cheaper to start and run a private limited company.

However it is important to recognise that there are alternatives to the limited company. Other forms of enterprise organisation can play a role in meeting needs in different sectors, and I am determined to ensure the legislation governing these models is up to date and that the burden of red tape is kept to a minimum. This legislation addresses particular problems which have been identified in the co-operative sector, and will help ensure that this model can thrive and grow to its potential