Results 6,421-6,440 of 36,764 for speaker:Enda Kenny

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: There is a different process of making appointments to these important positions. Those remarks that I mentioned there were followed through by others to the inquiry here and you have all those on record. But this is an important change that the Government have brought about here where there is, you know, an application process, an examination-interview process and a scrutinising process of...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Would you repeat that, Deputy?

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I don't recall that, no.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I don't. My only association with Mr. Drumm was a meeting I attended.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Yes, we would have sought the meeting because we went and visited both Anglo Irish, Bank of Ireland, AIB - I attended at those three myself. And the purpose of the meeting was to have a discussion about the general economic situation and to inquire about the healthy state, or otherwise, of the banks. And that's why I said that, in the case of Anglo Irish, a presentation was given that was...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Well, I did ask before I left, I said, "I'm not a banker but can somebody tell me, I'm hearing on the streets that things are not as you're presenting them here". And the answer that I got was, "Well, we can tell you that the model that we have here for Anglo Irish is an outstanding model. This bank will come through the recession stronger than any other."

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I do. I think it was an important ... it was strictly a formal engagement from representatives of a political party, inquiring legitimately from banks as to their views on the state of the economy and their position in so far as credit and lending was concerned and their response to our questions about the health, or otherwise, of the banking position they were in.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I was in ... I was actually out in, I think, it was the TV3 station in the morning. I had a call from the late Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan. I was actually just about to start an interview. I think at that stage that he may have spoken to Deputy Bruton as our spokesman on finance, and the question that he asked me was like, "What would Fine Gael's position be if a guarantee were...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Yes, I think that ... if I'm ... if I recall correctly, the late Minister Lenihan may have contacted his opposite number before ... I think, the interview was sometime after seven o'clock in the morning. I'm not quite sure of the time but I can check that out. That's the first I heard of it.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: It was early in the morning and he called me himself.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Such as they were, my regret would have been that the Government didn't listen to the consistent advice that Fine Gael would have given from our point of view; clearly, it has changed now. I suppose my biggest regret politically is that we didn't win the '97 election, that this might never have happened, but it did. And just on a point, I noted from one of my notes here, Mr. Chairman, just...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Well, we pointed out the growth in public expenditure, we opposed the way that benchmarking had been introduced, for instance. We called for a renegotiation of the principle of the way decentralisation was being promoted and consistency in respect of both of the lowering of income tax and the retention of corporation tax, of the tax rate. So ... where we tried to focus, from our Opposition...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Well, they were outlined in the programme itself. But we were consistent in our criticism of the lack of scrutiny from social partnership, in the directions that were given by, for instance, Finance in respect of benchmarking, the lack of scrutiny in terms of major infrastructure projects which overran seriously, and the wastage in public expenditure. So we wanted our tax position to be...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Yes, when I was Minister for Tourism, obviously, we sort of looked at a jaded tourism sector which had so much more potential than it was actually achieving. In the course of, you know, travelling throughout the country, you came across particular areas that were clearly in need of some sort of infrastructure investment. And people from all over the country, from particularly the coastal...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I might just say on that, for your information Senator, that in 2000, an interdepartmental committee comprised of Revenue Commissioners, Department of Environment, Finance, Revenue, Tourism ... they did an analysis of the scheme which had been extended up to December 1999 and they are the figures that I gave you. That they reckoned that there was €600 or €700 million generated,...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: I'm sure I was but I didn't.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: No.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Yes, of course. There should be.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Certainly not.

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (23 Jul 2015)

Enda Kenny: Well, I would say to you, Deputy Higgins, to run a major party, obviously costs a considerable amount of money. The vast majority of Fine Gael's fundraising came from our national draw, and still does, from ordinary members of the party and supporters around the country. Any occasions of a social nature were certainly not in the terms that you described them there as and obviously would...