FINE GAEL will not be supporting the Anglo Irish Bank Bill “in its current form” when it comes before the Dáil this afternoon, a party spokesman said last night.
Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment John Gormley said on RTÉ news: “We must have the highest standards of transparency and accountability. Those who have brought our banking system into disrepute must be pursued and punished and there can be no hiding place for those people.”
Numerous amendments to the Bill are being proposed by the main Opposition parties and Fine Gael deputy leader Richard Bruton has accused the Government of “making up banking strategy on the hoof”.
“The Government seems to be making up its banking strategy as it goes along. The changes in rules on deposits have added to this impression,” he said in a statement. “The growing confusion is now inflicting additional damage on all the banks. Investors are losing confidence in the Government’s recapitalisation plan.
“The Government must now articulate a much clearer strategy for the Irish banking system. Key elements of that strategy must be:
A credible plan for the future of Anglo Irish that secures its existing assets and protects taxpayers in an orderly work-out of the bank’s operations;
A model for dealing with parts of the loan books in all banks, which are impaired but cannot be priced. This now appears necessary for successful recapitalisation;
A strategy to manage the risk that the taxpayer is now shouldering, which gives taxpayers a reasonable prospect of a return for taking this responsibility.”
Labour’s Joan Burton said: “It is totally unsatisfactory that, less than 24 hours before the Dáil is due to meet, we still do not have a final and complete text of this crucial Bill.
“While I received a briefing on the Bill from officials of the Department of Finance today, the absence of a final text means that the Bill cannot be subjected to the level of scrutiny required.
“It also makes it very difficult for the Opposition to draft appropriate amendments. The delay in providing a final text does not inspire any confidence that the Government is on top of the situation.
“A key amendment I will be tabling will require the Minister for Finance to apply to the High Court for an order under the Companies Act for the appointment of one or more inspectors to investigate the affairs of Anglo Irish Bank.
She continued: “We are particularly concerned about the circumstances of the loans given to the former chairman, Seán FitzPatrick, and the relationship between Anglo Irish and the Quinn Group.
“If we are to ensure that, in future, the interests of taxpayers are not put at risk, we must discover exactly what happened in the past. The public has a right to know what was going on in Anglo Irish, as do shareholders or those whose pensions depended on the bank.
“The most effective way to establish this is through the appointment of an inspector. This will be an absolutely crucial amendment for the Labour Party,” Ms Burton said.
