Peter Mathews (Dublin South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have a paper here that I will leave with the committee. I preface my remarks by saying I take my hat off to these four gentlemen because they were not part of the bank boards, across the whole banking sector, that were not decent. I can say this safely because the figures and balance sheets show it. In the case of AIB, which was not part of its watch, its loan-to-deposit ratios for a series of years ended up at 155%, which is 72% above the norm of 90%, which means that the creation of the asset bubble, which could only occur with a credit bubble, is 72% to the account of the bank. No matter where the capital comes from, it is for the account of the bank. In the case of Bank of Ireland, which will be here tomorrow, it is 75%. The customers who, in good faith, have to live and provide accommodation for their families in owner-occupied houses borrowed into that asset bubble, and when it bursts we have a financial Nagasaki. That is where we are in Ireland today. It is not the fault of the witnesses. This is the truth and every time I try to say it, including this morning in the Chamber, I am muzzled and derided by the Minister for Finance. I am not asking for any praise but I am asking for acknowledgment of the truth. Around 180,000 families are in distress, despair and in some cases death. Last week, David Courtney died due to stress. As the committee is aware, he was a shareholder in a large NAMA customer. He was a very worthy developer. The developers are not at the core of this; it is the bank boards - not the witnesses - and I am not afraid to say that. Greg Pytel shows in mathematical exposition that if the banking sector keeps to fractional reserve banking-----