Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I will read it then. The question was about the level of NAMA staff that had effectively left NAMA and gone to the private sector. It is worrying that of the 108 staff members who resigned from the agency since its inception nearly 50%, or 51 former staff, have taken up employment in property companies, finance companies, and consultancy and law firms. From a contractual and data protection standpoint NAMA is not in a position to provide individual staff members’ details. The question comes from a prudential perspective. How can NAMA ensure those staff are not using their access to data in terms of providing a comparative advantage for the people with whom they took up employment following working with NAMA, who are probably competing in the same market? How can NAMA ensure they are not involved in the purchase of assets from NAMA that gives them a comparative advantage? What control mechanisms has NAMA put in place? I accept it is working against the background of trying to retain staff but my concern relates to getting value for the taxpayer and protecting the public purse. Could Mr. McDonagh deal quickly with that point? It is worrying that nearly 50% of former NAMA staff have gone into areas that are clearly related to property.