Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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There was a legitimate concern across parties in the Northern Executive that the impaired property and loans books in Northern Ireland would continue to be a drag on the Northern Ireland economy in the same way as when we had no property market in Dublin because impaired assets were a drag on it. Naturally, the Northern Executive was raising this issue. NAMA, which was outside that jurisdiction, was managing the assets in Northern Ireland. The First Minister and deputy First Minister were perfectly in order to be concerned about such an essential sector of their economy as building and development and trying to get it active. There was no volte-face. The Executive was interested in selling property at best value in Northern Ireland, but its primary interest was not what NAMA would get for the property, since that would accrue to NAMA and any profit would accrue to the Irish Exchequer. Its concern in Northern Ireland was to reactivate the sector economically. Speaking from memory, approximately £100 million in assets were disposed of by NAMA before Project Eagle arose. For one project that arose at the North-South meetings - it was a housing project in Dundonald - Executive members were appreciative of the way that NAMA worked with them. I do not think that there was an ongoing concern that was expressed every time that I met a Northern Ireland Minister, be it on a bilateral basis or at North-South talks.