Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)

I was trying to parablise to make a point, but we can talk about metaphorical and spiritual issues outside the Chamber.

If a person from overseas - who is not and does not want to be an Irish citizen and is not going to be offered €1million to become an Irish citizen - wants to try to make a killing and NAMA is happy for him or her to do so, I do not see why there should be any restriction put on him or her doing that.

I agree with what the Minister of State, Deputy Power said, namely, that there are enough provisions within the NAMA legislation and existing legislation to make sure that if people who are not tax compliant profit from a deal, resources of the State are in place to pursue them. It is in NAMA's interests for it to try to make a profit, speaking metaphorically, within the realm of NAMA. NAMA has the right to try to make a profit for the taxpayer and we should leave it to the tax office and the collector general to pursue those people who are not tax compliant. Such provision should not be tied into the legislation to the extent Deputy Burton would wish.

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