Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 34: To ask the Minister for Finance the process whereby the nominees as members of the expert investigation team to assist the Nyberg Commission were made; the person who made the appointments; with whom did Mr. Nyberg consult on the appointments; on whose recommendation they were made; and the amount the team was paid collectively and individually. [9899/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

On 7 July 2010, the previous Government announced its decision to establish a commission of investigation into the banking sector in Ireland, pursuant to the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004. The commission was formally established on 21 September 2010 by Government Order, and Mr. Peter Nyberg was appointed as the sole member of the commission. The commission reported on 22 March 2011 and its report was published on 19 April 2011. Under section 9 of the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004, the commission is independent in the performance of its functions. Part of this includes the methodologies of selection of the expert investigative team who assisted the commission.

Nominations for appointment and the actual appointments to the commission were a matter for the commission of investigation itself. Section 8 of the 2004 Act requires the Minister to approve the proposed appointment by a commission of investigation of persons to advise or assist it in relation to any matter within its terms of reference. In that regard, the commission wrote to the Department proposing the appointment of individuals under section 8 of the Act. These submissions noted that sanction for the appointment of senior level investigative experts and junior level investigative experts were based on proposed maximum per diem rates, having regard to a number of factors, including the nature and complexity of the work to be undertaken and the short-term nature of the work.

The amount paid to each individual varied in each case and depended on the number of days that the individual worked for the commission. It is expected, once all accounts are closed, that the aggregate figure to be paid to the sole member of the commission and those individuals engaged under section 8 of the Act will be in the region of €889,000.

Overall, there were 21 staff members working on the commission, including Mr. Peter Nyberg. Five administrative staff, seconded from my Department, assisted the commission and performed back-office support for it. The cost of these staff was borne by my Department.

I am satisfied that the commission acted in good faith at all times in its selection of staff and that the staff selected were appropriate for the performance of its function, especially in light of the time period the commission had to complete its report.

Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Minister but I am afraid he has not satisfactorily answered the question. If I could specifically readdress the question to him, it was how the appointments were made and how the individuals were selected. It is reasonable to ask the question about the arrival from Finland of a man to set up a 13-person commission and how he came to assemble it, particularly when one considers the composition of the commission. What worries me is that at least eight if not ten members of the commission were current or former bankers. When one is investigating the behaviour of bankers it seems entirely inappropriate that so many of those people assisting the investigator should also be ex-bankers themselves, whatever their pedigree. At least two members had a history with AIB while other members came from other banks in the Irish system. Other members of the commission were employees of the Department of Finance.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Could the Deputy ask a question please?

Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Is it satisfactory to the Minister that a majority of those people who were advising the commission, chosen, apparently, by Mr. Peter Nyberg, should be either bankers or former officials of the Department of Finance? Is it not correct as a result that at the very least we should know how those people were chosen? What is so unsatisfactory in the response which the Minister has given - he has been fine on the detail of the sum of €889,000 and I do not have any quarrel with that - is that we are not being told who Mr. Nyberg consulted when he decided to put so many bankers on a commission to investigate the banks.

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

A total of 21 staff were working on the commission, including Mr. Nyberg himself, and there were five administrative staff from the Department. When Mr. Nyberg first took up his position the Department of Finance assisted him in the initial preparatory work upon his arrival in this country. Once formally established the commission recruited staff independently in accordance with the provision of section 8 of the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004. He wished to ensure that the people who assisted him had appropriate experience to address the issues in the terms of the reference which required people with expertise in banking, finance and accounting rather than lay practitioners of goodwill. The selection criteria included solid, practical, professional experience in banking, lending and credit, credit and risk management, asset liability management, general governance supervision, property market issues and accounting expertise. That kind of expertise arose from the terms of reference of the commission, which was voted through in the House.

One might ask why the commission did not use a competitive tendering process. Mr. Nyberg himself decided not to pursue that route. The reasons given were the specialist subject matter of the investigation and the functions to be performed by the individuals retained, the qualification and expertise required and the short timeframe. Given that he was obliged to report within six months Mr. Nyberg did not wish to spend time in a competitive tender when he could decide himself whom he wanted to assist him in his investigation.

I do not know about Mr. Nyberg's familiarity with the country. I do not know whether he had business and banking contacts prior to his arrival. I met him on the day he presented his draft report to me. He seemed to me to be a very stable kind of man who would be a person of good judgment. That is my only experience of him. He was very interesting in his analysis of what happened. A lot of people said he should have named names but if he did so the work being carried out by the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Garda Commissioner and Mr. Paul Appleby might not have been able to proceed. He stayed away completely from names lest he would prejudice any parallel investigation that was being conducted.

Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I seek a "Yes" or "No" response from the Minister. His reply confirms my worst suspicions that it was the Department of Finance, again, which gave Mr. Nyberg the initial advice, which brings me back to my initial question, on the appointment of people from the Department of Finance, again, to sit with him on the commission and bankers. The Minister was not in office at the time. Does he not find that somewhat alarming, that it is the same insiders once again sitting in judgment on other insiders?

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I do not know whether there is any basis to the Deputy's allegation and have seen absolutely nothing to suggest what he says is correct. It is reasonable when a detailed investigation of banking files is being conducted that one should send in people who understand lending, risk and banking files. If I was sent in, I would not find my way around the files and would have no idea of what was going on and if gardaí were sent in, they would take a different line of investigation. It takes a thief to catch a thief. Therefore, we should send in a banker if we want to investigate bankers.