John Perry (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Daly, Mr. McDonagh and the team from NAMA. I was somewhat astonished by the comments made by Deputy McDonald in regard to the integrity of the board of NAMA due to the allegations made. They were quite outrageous. I am even astonished by the assertion made by Deputy Ross regarding integrity and his assertion that the taxpayer did not get a deal. I think NAMA has been extraordinarily successful, even this week with the sale of Project Jewel. The stabilisation of and the level of growth in the economy would be quite different without this. People are always looking at issues retrospectively, but when we look at the portfolio of properties in Northern Ireland and their location, we know there would be another question asked here today if those properties had not been sold.

The point has not been made clear here in regard to section 172 of the National Asset Management Agency Act. Deputy Ross is very much aware that this legislation embodies protocols regarding the sale of assets. We should consider the job opportunities, the redevelopment of the Docklands, the return from sales and the bond redemption. Could Mr. Daly explain what has been achieved? I believe what NAMA has achieved is extraordinary. I have been in the Oireachtas a long number of years and was here at the time of NAMA's formation under the former Minister, Brian Lenihan. We should look now at the return to the Exchequer and the profit that was projected by 2018. It is very easy to evaluate property now, but nobody knew the value in 2008 and 2009 when these were all unsecured bad debts.

It is very easy to cherry-pick, or for Deputy Wallace to come in and cherry-pick a property that might double its value, but he is not looking at the properties that might be getting a 5% gain. Will Mr. Daly give us a run through of the aggregate? It is more about the net profit overall rather than the amount of profit on every item. We have to take into account the whole bag of the mixed portfolio that was handed over to NAMA. I am very disappointed by the unfounded allegations made by a Deputy who is not prepared to attend any committee as a witness but who could throw out a statement that, seemingly, Sinn Féin wants to use as a political statement in the Northern Ireland Executive. It does not surprise me that many of the institutions of the North are not fully functioning with Sinn Féin's style of operation.