Results 2,741-2,760 of 7,082 for speaker:John Paul Phelan

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (15 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Finally, again-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (15 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: In response to one of the previous questioners, you spoke about the three staff who were looking after Bank of Ireland, that this has changed and there are many more people involved now. It seems to me, as a layman looking in from the outside, that there was no connection made between the exposure that a bank had, taking Anglo Irish Bank as an example, to loans to a particular developer...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (15 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: I have a two-pronged question. In reply to Deputy Doherty earlier, Professor Honohan said he had just one meeting with the Minister prior to the guarantee, in which he was not asked about banking directly. Was he surprised that he was not asked? Second, and I do not mean this in a bad way, Professor Honohan does not strike me as the type of man who would be slow to give his view. As that...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (15 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: On page 7 of his report Professor Honohan says that the major responsibility lay with the institutions themselves during the banking collapse. Does he think the institutions had enough skilled people in senior management positions or on their boards to be able to deal with the potential crisis?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (15 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Yes. On page 7 Professor Honohan says the major responsibility lies with them.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Mr. Regling is welcome. In his presentation today, he posed the question of whether there were failures by auditors. In his view, in drawing up his report, were there failures by auditors in the Irish banking institutions?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: From Mr. Regling's experience, was that a uniquely Irish thing in terms of our difficulties in the banking crisis, or were there questions over auditing in other countries that experienced difficulties as well?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: I want to turn to page 5 of the Mr. Regling's report where he spoke about a pattern of tax cuts that left Government revenues fragile. Can he outline briefly what he meant by the pattern of tax cuts?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Regarding those cyclical taxes, in 2006 they formed about 30% of the overall tax take in Ireland. What should that figure be in Mr. Regling's view?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Mr. Regling also mentions in his report that tax breaks to developers seemed to have been granted on almost an ad hocbasis and not in a fully transparent way. Can he elaborate on how he came to that conclusion?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Finally, in his report Mr. Regling said there was scope to mitigate the risks of the boom-bust cycle through prudent fiscal and supervisory policies. Why in his view were those steps not taken in Ireland?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: I welcome Professor Lane. Before and during the crisis, was he approached by anybody from the Government for his advice on what was taking place seeing as it was a major part of areas he has researched in his academic career?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Did Professor Lane feel that in any of those casual meetings with no agenda anything he said was reflected in decisions which were subsequently made?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: That is fair enough. Senator O'Keeffe and Deputy Higgins posed the question earlier of why such investment was directed towards property when he was talking about the amount of money invested in the country. In his answer to Senator O'Keeffe, Professor Lane touched on tax incentives in the property sector. At what stage does he believe those incentives ceased to have a positive impact?...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: In regard to the wider profession of economics, there were some voices which expressed, perhaps late in the day, criticism of fiscal policy. The term "groupthink" is often used regarding politicians, the media, bankers, property developers, and what went on in Ireland in the lead-up to the banking crisis. Was Professor Lane's profession part of the groupthink that went on?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (21 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Some of those voices were very late in the day.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Public Sector Allowances Review (27 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: 422. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review the decision made when the honours degree allowance was abolished that teachers, who were not working on the 5 December 2011, lost the allowance which equals €3,076 per annum; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3818/15]

Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation: Motion (Resumed) (28 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: I wish to comment on the establishment of the commission of investigation into mother and baby homes and to commend the Minister, Deputy Reilly, on his swift action on the issue. Mother and baby homes are just another chapter in what has been a series of revelations in the past 20 years in this country about the treatment of certain groups in society since the establishment of the State, as...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (28 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: I thank Professor Kane. Following on from the question of Deputy Doherty, with regard to governments that enter into blanket guarantees, once a guarantee of that nature is entered into, is it virtually inevitable that the guarantee will have to be continued until the immediate crisis passes? To use another driving analogy, of which Professor Kane has used many, is it akin to the no claims...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (28 Jan 2015)

John Paul Phelan: With regard to the financial reports issued by financial institutions, all businesses in the Irish context tend to post results quarterly. In terms of the unique circumstances surrounding banking, is it appropriate that the reporting terms be extended? Would a different reporting system be useful in terms of how banks report their financial situations?