Results 2,941-2,960 of 7,082 for speaker:John Paul Phelan

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay. In a draft memorandum to Government in October 2005, it stated: The Irish Bankers Federation approached the Department of Finance in April 2005 regarding changes to the Investment Intermediaries Act. ... They [being the IBF] have engaged McCann FitzGerald Solicitors to draft the legislation in conjunction with all of the major issuers of Covered Bonds in Ireland who have been closely...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: In your time, the first part of my question was ... I admit, in your answer, that you said that it would be unlikely that you drafted legislation. I'm only referring to the note, but-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Would it have been common practice, in your ten years, that such interaction would have happened between the IBF and the Department on particular items of legislation, that you would be preparing documents, whatever nature they were, whether they were drafted legislation or just highlighting areas that you think needed to be addressed-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay. I want to ask ... to turn now, maybe, to the area ... particularly the area surrounding the guarantee itself, and ask you if you had any interaction with the late Mr. Lenihan or Mr. Cowen between the end of 2007 and the introduction of the guarantee. We've had evidence from a number of witnesses at this stage that there was lobbying of various natures as to a political guarantee or,...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: You were unaware of the nature of the meeting that took place, then, on the night of the 20-----?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay. Can I ask, actually, you, kind of, touched on it there, how many members would you have had, say, at that period in 2008? How many banks or banking institutions would have been members of the federation?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: So, would there have been banks operating in Ireland that weren't members of the federation?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay, and, what was the nature of the fees paid, we'll say, by different institutions? Was it a standard fee across the board, or-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Yes. I mean, I'm not looking for figures, I'm just seeing is it a blanket figure or was it ...did it vary?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay. I just want to rewind a little bit then and go back to the guarantee itself. You are saying that there was no lobbying by the IBF prior to the guarantee announcement for any sort of Government action in respect of a guarantee?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: You also said that ... well in your explanation that because of the nature of the banking sector and different banks didn't want to tell competitors what their own issues were at the time, that you wouldn't have been privy to information.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Yes, okay, it does make sense. I want to turn, or actually perhaps before I turn just to finish on the guarantee area, the IBF hosted - we have discussed this particular function that took place in Dublin on 26 November 2008 with several witnesses who came before the inquiry, a retirement function for the chairman of the regulator, Mr. Patterson.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: In light of any of the evidence that you have heard or indeed subsequent events, what are your feelings with regard to the hosting of that particular function on that particular night?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: So do you accept that from the point of view of the general public that the idea that a lobby group hosting a retirement party - albeit maybe well deserved for the man who had been ill, who had been chairman of the regulator, really wasn't appropriate.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Okay. Did you on behalf of the IBF, or the IBF other staff members, lobby on behalf of banks on the issue of bondholders? And we have had a lot of discussion with several witnesses on particularly junior bondholders in different institutions. Was there any lobbying done to ensure that the guarantee or subsequent Government decisions would have ensured that those bondholders would not have...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Can I now ask you to turn to page 83 of Vol. 1, the Pat Farrell booklet. It's an e-mail from you from 15 October 2008.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Yes. It is where you wrote to the Secretary General, the Department of the Taoiseach requesting his personal support for the inclusion of Depfa Bank in the bank guarantee. Can you outline the circumstances that led you to write that e-mail?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Depfa were a member of the federation?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Why did you put the request or send the e-mail to the Department of the Taoiseach as well as through to the Department of Finance?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)

John Paul Phelan: Can I ask then in relation to that particular lobby, it did not succeed obviously but if it had to have succeeded, it would have opened up a potential leak, hugely more extensive liability on the taxpayer. Do you have a view now, were you purely acting in your role as chief executive or what is your view now as to that request?