Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

First of all, I have huge sympathy for the O’Donovan family and businesspeople who find themselves in the kind of financial pressure they are clearly feeling at the moment. Every bank in Ireland has an obligation, in my view, to behave fairly towards their clients. When we hear slogans like "We're backing brave" and all the rest of them coming from advertisements for banking in Ireland, it is not unreasonable that questions are raised as to whether they are supporting enterprise in an appropriate way. It is not appropriate for me to start getting involved in an individual case on the floor of this House when I do not know the full detail in terms of what happened. When loan books are sold on there is a responsibility, of course, on the regulator, which is the Central Bank of Ireland, to ensure consumers are given the protections that are expected. I simply do not know whether those rules were fully followed in this case. If the Deputy sends me on the details, I can look to inquire further.

I know the Deputy's constituency quite well. I know many of the business families there. It is a little unreasonable for the Deputy to raise this issue on the floor of the Dáil and expect a detailed answer from me without actually knowing the detail. There are legal questions and financial viability questions here. Of course, there are banking regulatory obligations as well. We probably need to have a look at the detail of what happened here to be able to give a more informed answer than I can give off the top of my head on the floor of this House.

See this speech in context