Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)

With regard to amendment No. 8 to section 63, has the Minister looked at the structures of the covered institutions whose loans are being transferred to NAMA? Effectively, one could have performing loans in those banks which may never be taken over by NAMA. One could have a situation where the banks would maintain certain performing loans through legal structures they have offshore and in countries with which we do not have memorandums of understanding in terms of tax law and laws of discovery. Has the Minister looked into that area in great depth?

The Minister would have to be concerned that the initial view taken was that there was €120 billion of developer or property loans in the covered institutions. We now find the figure has been reduced to €88 billion. Where has that more than €30 billion in developers loans gone? Some €120 billion was the gross value of the developer loans in the institutions whose loans were being transferred to NAMA. That is now down to €88 billion. If one takes out the rolled up interest, it is down to €77 billion. We want clarity on where that missing €32 billion has gone.

Has the Minister looked into the legal structures in regard to the loans? We cannot have a situation where the banks keep the cherry, the good stuff, and the taxpayer ends up with the chaff in NAMA.

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