Mary White (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat. I welcome Professor Walsh and wish him the best of luck in his new role. I was privileged to study national economics under Professor Walsh, because prior to his return in 1980 the standard was not brilliant.

The ordinary man and woman cannot believe the state the country is in, and the austerity programme that has resulted from this is a consequence of the behaviour of the banks. Many people, including me, find it difficult to accept that auditors could charge large fees to the then Anglo Irish Bank. How will we recreate credibility in companies?

In the United States, Enron, a company that was audited by Arthur Andersen, is an example of accountability. I know the legislation in the United States is different from Irish law. We must look at this. In the United States people are accountable. The system is transparent and one can finger a person and say that he or she did not do his or her work properly. I know there are investigations and that we must be circumspect. Day in, day out, the question is asked: why has no banker been held to account for what happened to the country?

Our recession is far more complex than that of any other country. What are we going to do? The witness mentioned that the council is in the process of financial reporting and statutory auditing and regulation. How is that going to be enforced? We appear to be useless in that regard. We are great at making laws - that is what I have learned here - but useless at implementing them. What will the witness do?