Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I'm ... I'm not so sure that in terms of the particular issue that we're talking about ... I wouldn't be that critical of the Minister of the day in terms of him not sharing the information that there were deep concerns in his Department about the future of the banking system and that options were being examined and being prepared. I mean, if that information had come out it would have precipitated the day and would have rushed us into a situation where, you know, the situation could be worse. Now, I would be critical of the Minister of the day in that I'm not sure, you know, what he was doing driving around south Dublin and eating garlic late after midnight shortly before the collapse. I would have thought that, ever since Northern Rock, there was time there to sit down and say, "What's going on in our own banks and what measures can we take?" And I presume he was being told that everything is hunky-dory. And as far as I can see, there are some people - I don't think they were dishonest - I think there are some people at the top of the banks themselves who were behaving recklessly but who didn't even know the depth of the crisis themselves. And I think to ask a Member of Dáil Éireann whether he or she should have been able to divine what was going on ... I don't think is the way the real world operates.