Results 3,221-3,240 of 19,445 for speaker:Brian Cowen

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: The National Economic and Social Development Office is the only agency under the Aegis of my Department. The Office has three constituent bodies; the National Economic and Social Forum (NESF), the National Centre for Partnership and Performance (NCPP) and the National Economic and Social Council (NESC), each of which has a Director/ CEO. The information regarding pay and remuneration for...

Written Answers — Emigrant Support Services: Emigrant Support Services (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: I raised the issue of immigration reform in the US during the course of my meeting with President Obama. I informed the President that my Government has campaigned very hard over recent years to try to find a solution to the situation facing our undocumented community in the US and to put in place new bilateral migration arrangements between our two countries. In the US the feeling is that...

Written Answers — Departmental Reports: Departmental Reports (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: The position is summarised in the table beneath: Recommendation Action Taken NESDO Discontinue NESDO except for the NESC The NESF and the NCPP, constituent bodies of the NESDO, are being dissolved and their staff are being absorbed into the NESC. Ireland Newfoundland Partnership Discontinuation of the Ireland Newfound Partnership The work of the Ireland Newfoundland Partnership has been...

Banking System: Motion (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: Today we take a tough but necessary step to recovery as a nation. The work done in the past year and a half on Ireland's public finances has greatly improved the world's view of Ireland. The cost of borrowing to fund our day-to-day enterprises has reduced markedly and we are now in a position to recover and grow the economy on a more sustainable basis. Many prominent commentators on the...

Banking System: Motion (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: I did not approve anything. That is a scurrilous statement.

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: First, the Deputy is incorrect in what he says in regard to the main banks. I understand a briefing has been provided to the parties and I would be surprised if that is his understanding of what is about to take place. Obviously, I do not wish to anticipate the statement that will be made. The markets do not close until 4.30 p.m. and I would have thought the importance of respecting that...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: Second, what we are doing today is to provide, as a result of the independent Financial Regulator's requirement to have best practice in terms of the emerging capital ratios required for investor confidence in our banks, that they would be fit for purpose and that the capitalisation that is required arising from that will in fact reflect the maintenance of capital ratios which will enable us...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: The Deputy is well aware that the Minister for Finance will come to the House at 5 p.m. to divulge those details to the House. The Deputy obtained a briefing for that purpose. The Deputy refuses to say that the Fine Gael policy on Anglo Irish Bank would cost-----

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: -----more than €65 billion in funding which will have to be repaid immediately to depositors and other providers of funding at the ECB. The policies we are proceeding with are the policies necessary to make the banking system fit for purpose. That is what we have set out to do and that is what we will do.

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: What Deputy Kenny seeks to put forward would greatly expose the taxpayer to a far greater degree of indebtedness than what he suggests.

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: The Deputy will be aware that we have had a global banking crisis for the past two years. He will be aware there are 18 EU states who have recapitalised their banks to the tune of €300 billion. He will be aware there are bank guarantees to the tune of trillions of euro in European banking. It is time we recognised that Ireland could not be immune from what happened such as the fall of...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: The country will be not be immune from the €300 million in recapitalisations in other European Union countries. Trillions of euros are being placed under guarantee simply because the international financial system practically collapsed. Capital had been wiped out and we need to put the banking system back into place. At 5 p.m., the Minister for Finance will come into the House to outline...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: I have outlined the facts of the matter to Deputy Gilmore on a number of occasions even as he continued to put forward his view of the world. I have no intention today of looking back because I dealt with the issue many times in response to his repeated mantra. Had we pursued policies other than the ones we introduced when the crisis started in August 2008, when we had a total-----

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: When Lehman Brothers collapsed-----

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: I will try one more time. When the situation arose in 2008, this Government took the decisions that were necessary to deal with it. Had we pursued the policies proposed by the Labour Party, we would have seen the collapse of the Irish economy. That is a fact because Labour Party Deputies did not support the State guarantee which was necessary to avoid such an implosion of the financial system.

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: It is a bit rich to hear a lecture from Deputy Gilmore on the matter. We put forward an estimate at that time because, as we pointed out-----

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: I ask Deputy Higgins to let me answer the question. We made the point that every loan would be examined on a case-by-case basis. The contention from the opposite side of the House was that it would be a sweetheart deal and the NAMA operation would not have rigour or due diligence. According to Labour Party Deputies, it was all part of a scam. We ensured that NAMA's valuations took account...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: This has also ensured that the quality of security will be reflected in any valuation undertaken. We made clear at the time that it could only be done on the basis of a loan-by-loan valuation process, which differentiated between the various institutions and the loans they held. This is very different from the Labour Party's proposal for peremptory nationalisation without State guarantee,...

Leaders' Questions (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: -----without a State guarantee, we would have been unable to offer confidence that the Government was standing behind the system when it was in imminent peril. That was the situation then but, as the Minister will make clear at 5 p.m., we have made the response that is now necessary to ensure we have a banking system that provides the prospect of economic recovery and serves the economy....

Order of Business (30 Mar 2010)

Brian Cowen: It is proposed to take No. 1, Finance Bill 2010 - Recommendation from the Seanad and No. a8, motion re Stability of Banking System. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that the Dáil shall sit later than 8.30 p.m. tonight and business shall be interrupted not later than 10 p.m. The proceedings in respect of No. a8 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a...