Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses and thank them for their opening statements and for the information provided to the committee in advance. I will start with the escrow fund. I note Mr. O'Kelly's comments in his opening statement. The total net assets in the fund decreased by an alarming €36 million in 2020 and, I think, €16 million in 2019. That brings the fund to €13.98 billion, which is approximately 87.6% of its original value. The matters before the European courts may take a few years - and Mr. O'Kelly might offer his own opinion on that - but in terms of the exposure for the State, if this were to decrease further or go on for a number of years does Mr. O'Kelly estimate the amount in the fund dropping further? Is there an exposure to the State if the fund is not managed and is decreasing in value all the time? There is an equal relationship between Apple and the NTMA in managing the fund. I ask Mr. O'Kelly to comment on that matter.