Results 5,401-5,420 of 16,537 for speaker:Brian Lenihan Jnr

Financial Services Regulation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: To take the contentions made by the Deputy in turn, first, an estimated figure of €23 million to date was cited by her. Of course, the bulk of that sum was discharged by the banks themselves as part of the recapitalisation arrangement - the banks were obliged under the recapitalisation arrangements to defer these expenses. In view of the crisis that emerged in September 2008, Merrill...

Financial Services Regulation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: With the sanction of the Government, the Department is recruiting an in-house banking analyst to analyse bank matters. That person will be appointed as a civil servant within the Department, although it was not possible to appoint such a person by way of transfer from an existing Department. I was advised at the outset of the banking crisis that the Department required such advice, and that...

Financial Services Regulation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: That is the civil servant to whom I referred in my reply to Deputy Morgan.

Financial Services Regulation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I do not have that information to hand. Merrill Lynch staff were constantly on call and available up to and during the guarantee period, during subsequent discussions with the financial institutions, in connection with the decisions surrounding the nationalisation of Anglo Irish Bank, and in decisions surrounding the capitalisation of Bank of Ireland and AIB. As Merrill Lynch had been...

Financial Services Regulation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I will arrange for the information to be provided to the Deputy.

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Prices set in the public sector make up only about 4% of the basket of goods and services used in compiling the consumer price index. However, public sector prices make up a much smaller component than in the past. Some services such as telecoms have been privatised, and the setting of more prices has been devolved to independent regulators, particularly in the energy sector. Prices in the...

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I did not indicate in my answer that these are matters in which the Government has no function. I indicated that the sectors to which the Deputy referred were sectors in which the prices were set by the Commission for Energy Regulation. Electricity and gas tariffs are the responsibility for the CER, and that is the statutory position. With respect, they are not the responsibility of the...

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: No, but it is pertinent as well. The Deputy did give the example of electricity, and the regulator there is responsible-----

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Yes, but the Deputy did not give an example of those areas, but an area which is of great importance and which is under the tariff control of a regulator. I have considerable sympathy for the point the Deputy has expressed. If we are to grapple with our problems, it is not enough simply to have an adjustment in the public sector or an adjustment in the competitive public sector. We also...

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Is the Deputy suggesting - I do not criticise her if she is - that we should introduce price controls in certain areas?

Price Inflation. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I appreciate that I should not, like a Kerry man, answer a question with a question. If Deputy Burton is suggesting the introduction of price controls, I will examine the matter.

NAMA Business Plan. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Prices set in the public sector-----

NAMA Business Plan. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: We had a few hours of this on Thursday evening.

NAMA Business Plan. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: This is a succinct reply, so the Deputy might get a few supplementary questions in. I published the draft NAMA business plan, which was prepared by the interim NAMA management, to inform the debate on NAMA. It is clear from its title that it is a draft report. The actual business plan cannot be initiated until NAMA is established and a board is appointed. The function of the Comptroller...

NAMA Business Plan. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The valuations that will be reached, under the separate and independent valuation procedure that is envisaged in the Bill, will establish whether Deputy Burton is correct. The 5% discount rate in the draft business plan, which was mentioned by Deputy Bruton, is based on the current cost to the Government of funding ten-year bonds. This is an appropriate discount rate as the term of NAMA is...

NAMA Business Plan. (3 Nov 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The business plan proceeds on the assumption that this fall will continue.

Written Answers — Interdepartmental Committees: Interdepartmental Committees (21 Oct 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I announced, during the debate on the Investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2009 last March, that the preparation of the draft legislation provided an opportunity to consider once again the position regarding ethical investment and that I would establish an Interdepartmental Committee to examine the issues further and to report to me. The Committee...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (21 Oct 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: This is a matter for the Revenue Commissioners and I wrote to the Deputy on 17 July last and set out the position as advised to me by them. In the context of the Deputy's previous Parliamentary Question (No. 118 of 13 Oct 2009) the Revenue Commissioners have also advised that the matter is now the subject of a complaint to the Ombudsman.

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (21 Oct 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I propose to take Questions Nos. 143 to 145, inclusive, together. The buildings concerned are leased to accommodate the following bodies: - The Health Service Executive occupies 2-3 Parnell Square. - The Companies Registration Office, the Registry of Friendly Societies, and the Competition Authority occupy 13-15 Parnell Square. - The Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, the...

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (21 Oct 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The table lists the bodies under the aegis of my Department, who are members of IBEC, together with the amounts paid to that organisation. Body Paid in 2007 Paid in 2008 Paid to date in 2009 The Central Bank and Financial Services Authority â'¬23,367 â'¬24,820 â'¬25,626 Anglo Irish Bank â'¬23,940 â'¬24,823 â'¬24,903 National Treasury Management Agency â'¬9,099 â'¬9,130 Nil