Results 601-620 of 7,975 for speaker:Joe Higgins

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Okay, and, Mr. O'Flynn, the examiner reported that you were able to buy back some of your loans or-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Yes. Is that true?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Yes, because of time I'll just move on, Mr. O'Flynn. Mr. O'Flynn, you said the developer is not to blame for the crash. Most people and many witnesses certainly to this inquiry would say that in many ways, developers and bankers were Siamese twins responsible for blowing up the bubble to excessive lending, speculation and so on that caused the crash?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Okay. Mr. O'Flynn, you asked a question in the course of answering ... or, here, tonight, and you posed, "How can we build houses that people can afford?" You're aware that a High Court judge, Kenny, had a report in '73-'74 ... that the price of building land should be controlled so that speculation was ruled out. And if you combine that with building homes at cost prices, people can...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: It was never implemented.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Just, lastly-----

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (22 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Lastly, Mr. O'Flynn, because my time is up, we see now venture funds - what are called in some media circles "vulture capitalists" - buying up large tranches of apartments and homes here and becoming extensive landlords, making ... make people who exist in those developments feel very insecure, very uncomfortable. What kind of a legacy is that for developers and banks to leave to ordinary people?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Good morning, Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Gallagher, you refer there to the Credit Institutions (Financial Support) Act 2008, enacted by the Oireachtas on 2 October 2008. Can you recall when work commenced in the Attorney General's office on the legal provisions which eventually became enshrined in that and, just to put it in context for you, I refer to a scoping document dated 24 January 2008...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Okay. And referring to those very slides, Mr. Gallagher, there were some from February '08 and then a further presentation - all this has been in evidence previously but we don't need to take the time to put it up. I just want to ask you one thing in relation to that ... in this ... that the February slide said, "open-ended [...] State guarantees [exposing] the Exchequer to the [...] the...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Okay. And, Mr. Gallagher, can we fast forward then the night of the guarantee in September 2008? And the evidence from the senior bank executives, who were in and out of meetings in Government Buildings, is that they brought a draft guarantee on the night. And Mr. Gleeson's evidence is, to quote, "we furnished our draft guarantee [...] to the Government at [a] very early session." And Mr....

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: And, Mr. Gleeson, or Mr. Gallagher, sorry, Mr. Gleeson, to quote him again, he makes that point but then ... and he says, "This formula was eventually adopted later in the night pretty well word for word". And what I want to put to you, Mr. Gallagher ... if it's extraordinary, or not, that you, perhaps, and the Government wouldn't be coming with written formulas in relation to what needed to...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: And, Mr. Gallagher, do you remember having sight of that document or having the document in your hand that the banks said they brought?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Thank you, Mr. Gallagher. We've also had evidence that there was a sentence, I think, at the initiative of the Government or Government officials stating that all banks in the State were solvent, and on the banks' request that was removed from the final version. Can you throw any light on that?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: But, Mr. Gallagher, does it suggest that there were people in the room that night who had very serious concerns that there were ... some banks were actually insolvent on that night?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Yes.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Just to move on, Mr. Gallagher, because of time. You state in your opening statement that President Trichet of the European Central Bank "had evidently made it clear that the Government should stand behind its banks, and that the banks were the State's responsibility". Do you remember being advised of the rationale given to you to accept the position of Mr. Trichet?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Mr. Gallagher, you outline in your statement that there was "no fundamental legal or constitutional impediment to introducing legislative measures for further burden sharing." Can you throw a little light then on what happened subsequently? We had evidence yesterday from Mr. Corrigan of the National ... formerly of the National Treasury Management Agency writing to the Minister for Finance...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Yes. On the other hand then, Mr. Gallagher, you said it wasn't a legal or constitutional impediment. You had these other considerations and pressure from Europe. But what was your reflection on putting a €64 billion burden of bad bank debts onto the shoulders of the Irish people, taxpayers and the consequences of austerity and so forth that flow from that?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: Mr. Gallagher, you said earlier that you felt Ireland was isolated as the crisis broke but did you, as Attorney General, were you a regular attendee at international Bilderberg Group conferences during the crisis?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (16 Jul 2015)

Joe Higgins: And were you there as an official representative?