Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Where does one go after that?

I welcome the publication of the report and commend Mr. Justice Cregan and his team on their diligence. The report runs to more than 1,500 pages as everybody here is aware. As I have only a short amount of time I will focus on the issues that stood out for me.

The report of the commission of investigation into the IBRC sale of Siteserv to Millington for €45 million showed that as part of that deal, IBRC, which succeeded Anglo Irish Bank, wrote off €119 million worth of Siteserv's €150 million debt. It is clear from reading the report that the integrity of the Siteserv sales process was compromised from the very start. The phrase, "tainted by impropriety", is mentioned on more than 40 separate occasions within this report.

The detail in the report leaves the reader in no doubt that certain individuals manipulated the process for their own self-interest. These individuals concealed information and behaved in a manner described in the report as "manifestly improper and wrong". The report also stated the Siteserv transaction was not commercially sound in the manner in which it was conducted, the decisions made and the outcomes achieved. There are a number of examples of undisclosed conflicts of interest, something to which we have become accustomed with regard to other matters that will be discussed in this House tomorrow.

The report found that in March 2012, the Siteserv board proved in principle the sale of the group. It said Siteserv CEO, Mr. Brian Harvey, attended this meeting and voted to approve the sale. He concealed from the board the fact that he had a significant financial interest in this particular bid succeeding. Mr. Harvey also concealed from the board that Siteserv co-founder, Mr. Niall McFadden, was arranging a plan to avoid Mr. Harvey paying tax on his bonus. The report found Mr. Harvey did not pay tax on his €350,000 bonus or on the receipt of shares in the new company and that Mr. McFadden paid no tax on the almost €500,000 finder's fee paid to him in shares by Mr. O'Brien.

It also found that there was a below-the-surface process where certain events occurred in the course of the sale process without the knowledge of the bank. This below-the-surface process meant steps were taken and decisions made in the course of the sale process in a manner that was manifestly improper and which undermined the integrity of the Siteserv sale process. Bonuses of more than €800,000 to Siteserv directors on completion of the sale were “lavish ... and entirely unacceptable for a Company that was costing the taxpayer almost €118 million in loan write-offs and losses”. Yet again, the taxpayer is on the hook, given the IBRC could have recovered up to €8.7 million more than it agreed to accept in settlement of Siteserv's debt.

Urgent reform is needed with regard to how inquiries like this debt are dealt with. The commission took seven years to publish its report; clear evidence that we need a much more efficient way of getting to the bottom of matters such as those dealt with in this report. Seven years is far too long. The current system is broken and absolutely needs urgent attention.

Yesterday, I spoke to a struggling business owner who received a sheriff's warrant letter for an unpaid tax bill of almost €2,500. Added to that bill was almost €400 in interest, €72 in bailiff's costs and €160 in sheriff's poundage, bringing the bill to just over €3,000. Small business owners are struggling but as long as the vested interests are seen to, the Government seems to look the other way. That is my opinion anyway. Ireland is a great little country to do business in but only if you are part of the old boys club network. As the saying goes, if I owe you €1,000, that is my problem, but if I owe you €1 million, that is your problem. Sinn Féin in government will change this and we certainly will. We will turn the tide away from those vested interests in favour of ordinary workers and small business owners and their families. This has to stop.

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