Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 24 June 2015

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis

Nexus Phase

Mr. John McCarthy:

I think the Wright report is quite clear on this. There ... the Department wasn't called upon to lead during that period. The Department was sidelined by the social partnership process, the programme for Government process, all of these had the effect that the Department simply existed to pay the bills. I think that phrase is actually used in the Wright report. The Wright report is also quite clear that the Department took leadership once the crisis kicked in. The Department produced the national recovery plan upon which the programme was based, and it was a very successful programme. The economy is now doing very well on foot of coming out of the programme and so forth. So leadership was shown when it was needed and when the Department was called to lead, when it wasn't sidelined. Sorry, I've forgotten the second part of your question now?