Results 30,861-30,880 of 33,214 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Does that letter contain a figure of €220 million?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Okay.
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: I accept that but nonetheless we are at a point here where there is a figure in writing of €375 million against a figure of €220 million. What figure was finally agreed in the contract?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: I am looking at this letter. There is no reference in it to the figure of €220 million, to Mr. Maloney.
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: How did the Department find out that it was €411 million?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Was it informed at any point before that?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: I wish to emphasise the huge variation between the €220 million figure here and the eventual figure of €411 million.
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: I have read that but what I am stunned by is the fact that the figure and how high it could be was never communicated back to the Department. I understand the point about ministerial consent to borrowing and the point about planning but the key point here is that a contract was eventually signed for €411 million by an agency of the State, by the Department of the Environment,...
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Who was physically in the room when this was happening?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Incorporeal meetings appear to have been in vogue in that period. This meeting took place with the majority of people taking part via telephone. I want to go on to the particular issue of declaration of interest. Paragraph 2.3 states: "members were concerned that to some people there might be a perception of conflict but following further discussion it was agreed that such perceived...
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: If there was a conflict of interest at the meeting, why was there not a conflict of interest at the other two meetings?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Mr. Curtin was one of the people who withdrew from the meeting. Is that correct?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Who was the individual who withdrew?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: It was Mr. Declan McCourt. What bank was Mr. McCourt involved with at that stage?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: Bank of Ireland and Anglo Irish Bank were two of the banks foremost in supplying investment to large property deals and large construction activities at that time. Did it not occur to anyone during the previous two meetings that their banks might have been involved in looking to secure funding for the deal if it was agreed by the board? It is not only a matter of an actual conflict of...
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: The were on the boards, though. They may have been shareholders.
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: It appears extraordinary to me that if a conflict of interest was identified in that meeting, the potential for a conflict of interest was not identified at other meetings. I want to focus on how this happened. All this took place over the telephone. When these people referred to a conflict of interest, what did they do? Did they hang up?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: I thank Mr. McCarthy for that clarification. They stayed in the meeting. That is a helpful clarification. According to the minutes of the meeting at paragraph 2.1, the chairman drew attention to the fact that he and the chief executive had been advised by Mr. McNamara at 8.30 p.m. the previous night that Mr. McNamara had been in discussions with Bank of Ireland and Anglo Irish Bank to...
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: The individuals who were directors of those banks stayed for the entire meeting. Is that the case?
- Public Accounts Committee: Special Report No. 77 of the Comptroller and Auditor General: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Resumed) (2 May 2013)
Paschal Donohoe: That was the legal advice that came back despite the fact that the individuals in question were directors of the banks.