Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following:“notes that:

— the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) Chairman has stated that the NAMA Board is fully satisfied that the Project Eagle sales process delivered the best possible return that could have been achieved for Irish taxpayers;

— it remains the case that no allegations of wrongdoing have been directed at NAMA, despite all the confusion and conflation in the coverage of this matter;

— ongoing investigations, including that being undertaken by the UK National Crime Agency (NCA), must not be obstructed or compromised by a Commission of Investigation;

— NAMA have advised that the UK NCA has confirmed that no aspect of the Agency’s activities are under investigation;

— the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) must be afforded the appropriate time and space to complete its Section 9 of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993 value for money review into Project Eagle properly and in accordance with due process;

— the Minister for Finance has made relevant documentation held by the Department of Finance relating to Project Eagle publically available to the Committee of Public Accounts and on the Department of Finance website;

— NAMA has made extensive information available to various parliamentary committees including the Dáil Committee of Public Accounts; the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Finance and Personnel; all of this information, over 350 pages, is publicly available on the NAMA website and through the transcripts of the relevant committee hearings;

— in the context of all of this documentary evidence and testimony, no specific allegations of wrongdoing appropriate for a Commission of Investigation have emerged;

— the Government will continue to monitor ongoing criminal investigations and will seriously consider any specific allegations of wrongdoing appropriate for a Commission of Investigation should any such allegations be made; and

— NAMA is continuing to progress its mandate to maximise the return to the Irish State, as evidenced in its 2015 Annual Report and Accounts and should not be impeded in its continuing efforts to do so;

and resolves to:

— respect the integrity of the ongoing UK NCA criminal investigation;

— allow the C&AG to complete its work in accordance with due process;

— allow the Committee of Public Accounts to exercise its oversight; and

— call for any criminal allegations and evidence to be brought to the attention of the relevant authorities.”

If we cast our minds back to late 2009 when my predecessor, the late Brian Lenihan, was proposing the establishment of NAMA, we will remember that it was a time of great uncertainty. It is no secret that I, among many others, had doubts about the prospects of a National Asset Management Agency. However, it must be said the Government of the day took early and decisive action in setting up NAMA. The NAMA Act rightly established a high degree of public accountability for NAMA and established an independent board to implement NAMA's commercial mandate. Indeed, a number of NAMA board members first appointed in late 2009, including the chairman and CEO, continue to progress diligently NAMA's commercial mandate to this day. In addition, long-serving members of the House will recall that the then Minister, Mr. Brian Lenihan, agreed to the establishment of NAMA's Northern Ireland advisory committee under section 33 of the NAMA Act following discussions with his counterpart in Northern Ireland, Mr. Sammy Wilson. The board of NAMA appointed a person from Northern Ireland to the advisory committee who had been recommended by Mr. Wilson to Mr. Lenihan. It should be remembered, however, that the Northern Ireland advisory committee had no decision-making powers and no access to confidential information. Given the cross-Border interests at stake, it was appropriate for NAMA to establish a non-decision making committee to advise the board in relation to Northern Ireland matters in the context of NAMA's objectives.

I am pleased to acknowledge that NAMA has proven to be one of the great successes of our recovery as underpinned by the well-crafted NAMA Act. The key provisions in the NAMA Act ensure the commercial independence of NAMA, establish its accountability to the Oireachtas and provide for the legal accountability of NAMA employees. In accordance with section 10 of the NAMA Act, NAMA is obliged to pursue a commercial mandate and to achieve, expeditiously, the best financial return for the Irish taxpayer. It is against this mandate that NAMA's activities must be assessed. In that regard, the redemption of €1 billion of senior bonds last Wednesday, 22 June, means that NAMA has just €4.6 billion, or 15%, of senior debt to repay of the original €30.2 billion issued. This progress continues to contribute to the creditworthiness of the sovereign in eliminating the guarantee of NAMA's senior debt as a contingent liability for the State. It is very encouraging to see that the NAMA board now predicts a potential surplus of up to €2.3 billion which will return to the State when it completes its work. On the strong foundation of the NAMA Act and with the great efforts of NAMA management and staff, NAMA has moved from being a potential liability to an almost certain asset to the State.

Members of the House will also know that under the NAMA Act the Committee of Public Accounts has the power to examine NAMA's annual accounts which are audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General and to call on the NAMA chairman and CEO to give evidence whenever required on various matters, including the annual accounts and any special reports the Comptroller and Auditor General publishes. The established oversight of NAMA provided by the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Committee of Public Accounts highlights how independent bodies of the State operate in line with legislation in the best interests of the Irish taxpayer. In addition, we also know that, when necessary, criminal charges and convictions can be and have been meaningfully pursued under the NAMA Act. It is clear to me that the NAMA Act established the appropriate mechanisms to hold NAMA and NAMA staff accountable in respect of their legislative mandate. We should allow those mechanisms to function.

There has been much coverage of various aspects of NAMA's sale of its Northern Ireland loan portfolio. The allegations of wrongdoing that have been made and that are being criminally investigated are extremely concerning. We support each of these investigations and stand ready to assist in any way that is helpful. I have already made relevant documentation held by the Department of Finance relating to Project Eagle publically available to the PAC and the Northern Ireland finance committee. The documentation is also on the Department of Finance website. NAMA has made extensive information available to various parliamentary committees including the Dáil's Committee of Public Accounts, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and the Northern Ireland Committee for Finance and Personnel. All of this information, which stands at over 350 pages, is publicly available on the NAMA and committee websites. As such, it is notable that even with all of this material available in the public domain, the calls for a commission of investigation into Project Eagle have not identified any specific concerns that such a commission could appropriately investigate. I encourage the signatories of the current motion to review thoroughly these materials as this may help them to articulate a more informed and coherent position. We had a repeat of the allegations today by Deputy Wallace. If he is so sure of the veracity of these allegations, he does not need the cover of privilege to make them. If he is so sure of his grounds, he should make them outside the House. Deputy Clare Daly has a peculiar attitude to commissions of investigation, seeing them as trawling instruments which may come up with something after which proceedings would follow. I remember reading "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and it was either the Mad Hatter or the Dormouse who said "Verdict first, trial afterwards". That is the sort of due process being advocated in the House by people who make allegations under privilege which they do not substantiate or make in public without the cloak of privilege to protect them.

As everybody knows, there are a number of inquiries or investigations into Project Eagle. The most notable ongoing investigation is the UK National Crime Agency's criminal investigation. It has been inferred by some that arrests associated with this investigation imply wrongdoing on the part of NAMA. On the contrary, NAMA advises that the NCA has confirmed that no aspect of its activities are under investigation. It is the role of An Garda Síochána to determine if there are grounds for a criminal investigation in this jurisdiction. To my knowledge, no such investigation is being pursued by gardaí. Anyone who believes he or she has information which would justify a criminal investigation should bring that information to the gardaí and allow them to do their job. We also are aware that the Comptroller and Auditor General has undertaken a section 9 value-for-money review of Project Eagle and intends to issue its report once completed. This review is consistent with the Comptroller and Auditor General's power to investigate, scrutinise and report on concerns regarding any aspect of NAMA's work which may arise through its annual audits or special reports on any aspect of the agency's work. I am sure that, following the Comptroller and Auditor General publication of this review, the newly appointed Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts will invite the NAMA CEO and chairman to discuss the Comptroller's opinions.

5 o’clock

It is, after all, that committee's mandate to ensure that NAMA operates in line with its legislative objectives, and the committee is well equipped to do so.

Therefore, taking into account the investigations that are under way, it is my view that there is no specific line of inquiry that could be usefully pursued by a commission of investigation. The appropriate investigations are already taking place in the appropriate jurisdictions. It is unwise to launch a costly commission of investigation on claims that are under investigation by the appropriate authorities. If specific allegations of wrong-doing are not being investigated, make them known to the relevant authority in the appropriate jurisdiction, be that the National Crime Agency, NCA, the Garda or the PSNI. If there are specific allegations of wrong-doing that are appropriate to a commission of investigation, make them known to this House.

In the absence of such specific allegations, I call on the Dáil to support the proposed counter-motion and allow all of the appropriate authorities the time and space required to complete their work.

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