Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The section deals with the fact that we are extending existing treasury services to these public bodies in addition to bodies that have already benefitted from them. The question being raised now is a wider policy issue. The NTMA has statutory independence under its own Acts and was removed from the aegis of the Department and given operational autonomy. This was for a good reason and its record proves that this was the correct decision. The NPRF is also independent in its investment strategy and it operates under the relevant Act. It is not subject to amendment by me as Minister for Finance. I believe that its independence is critical in terms of allowing it to maximise its returns on the funds it invests, which cannot be touched, statutorily, until 2025.

The philosophy behind our dealings with the NTMA and the NPRF has been to respect their statutory independence and allow them to get on with the remit with which they were provided under statute. It was a wise decision to avoid duplication within the Department of Finance of the effort made by these agencies. Obviously, the NTMA reports to the Minister, has an annual reporting mechanism, and is answerable to the committees in terms of its operations. However, I do not give operational guidelines on a regular basis to the NTMA or the NPRF. They act under statute and derive their powers from that. The record of the NTMA proves that its independence has been fundamental to its success.

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