Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

On the last point where the Deputy spoke of them being historical at that stage, there is no obligation on any public body or statutory body to produce reports every 90 days. We all agree in this House that this is an exceptional situation.

I would agree with Deputy O'Donnell's distinction between audited accounts and, effectively, management accounts, and it is a fair distinction to draw, but perhaps it would be best to go through the various items which would be covered by the relevant amendment by the Minister.

The new section 23, should it be passed, would require NAMA to submit reports to the Minister on its activities in a form directed by the Minister. This amendment is being made following the Committee Stage in which the Minister undertook to look into the frequency of such reports. It is not the frequency of the reports that matter, but rather what is contained in those reports.

The Minister has now decided to amend the frequency from two reports a year to four reports a year to afford the appropriate oversight and scrutiny and to provide the Oireachtas and the Minister with more regular and detailed information. Each quarterly report will be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas and a copy will be sent to the relevant Oireachtas committee or sub-committee tasked with examining NAMA matters.

The revised section has been also amended to ensure the information requirements placed on NAMA by this section apply equally to each NAMA group entity. That is an important reporting requirement as well, especially in light of the discussion on the SPVs and group entities which took place earlier today and yesterday.

Subsection (6) provides a comprehensive list of the information which is to be provided in the quarterly reports. The information, which is set out, is the most important aspect here. I made the point earlier that it is not a case of us wanting the monthly bank accounts of borrowers, irrespective of whether they are more than €100,000. What the Oireachtas requires is appropriate information to be able to question the relevant officers of NAMA and the chief executive under its powers as to the type of loans they have brought over, the number and condition of loans which are outstanding and to categorise them as between non-performing and performing. Non-performing loans should be categorised as to the degree-----

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