Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I note that the terms of reference for the Charleton inquiry have been published and that they will be subject to debate later in the afternoon. Subsequent to events last night and based on the line-up of Ministers in front of us, are we looking at an audition here this morning?

I draw the attention of the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Richard Bruton, to a commitment the Government made on establishing a commission of inquiry to investigate Project Eagle, from which it seems to be reversing. As the Minister knows, it was reported in 2015 that Project Eagle, a loan portfolio of 850 properties across Northern Ireland, was sold for €1.6 billion by NAMA. There is considerable concern that this was not the true value of this amount of property and that the true value was not sought or delivered. The Comptroller and Auditor General has made some very damning findings in that regard.

There are allegations of political involvement, both in the North and in the South, and representations that favoured one buyer over another, and these have been covered in detail by BBC's "Spotlight" programme. Cerberus, the successful buyer, actually met the Department of Finance before the sale was closed, which I would imagine was completely inappropriate. I ask the Minister, Deputy Bruton, to comment on that. The Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, actually met Cerberus the day before the closure.

There are reports and records of contact between the Minister for Finance and Ministers from Northern Ireland, particularly the then First Minister, Mr. Peter Robinson, and the then Minister, Mr. Sammy Wilson. It is alleged also that £7 million was involved in fixing the deal and that it was lodged in an offshore account. This is now being investigated by an assembly finance committee.

There are allegations that decisions in NAMA were made without adequate notes being taken or proper management of the apparent conflicts of interest. There was a flawed sales process and an inability on the part of NAMA to show that it got the best value for money for the State. The sale involved so much money that investigations by the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the US Department of Justice are under way.

The Committee of Public Accounts is finalising a report on the sale as we speak and has been working on that for the past number of months, but the Government committed on an all-party basis to a commission of inquiry into Project Eagle some weeks ago. The Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, has demurred from that commitment because he does not feel that there were adequate grounds for a commission.

Will the Minister, Deputy Bruton, commit that the Government will establish a commission of inquiry and will he outline the timeline for its terms of reference?

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