Results 10,241-10,260 of 15,555 for speaker:Eoghan Murphy
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. In every year, bar one, from 2000 to 2008, the budget package agreed by Government was greater than what the Department of Finance was recommending, and were you satisfied with this outcome to the budgetary process in each of those years?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Well, did you ever advise or caution against the increases that were being decided upon by Government versus what the Department of Finance was recommending?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Advising in support of those, of taking into account those issues, or-----
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. But then they weren't taken into account, is that correct?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay.
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. Were you ever concerned that irresponsible budgetary decisions were being taken because of a looming election?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. How do you explain the reversal in spending in 2002, following the general election? So, at the beginning of the year, for the first six months, spending was 22% higher, year-on-year, but, by the end of the year, it was only 14% higher and, after the election, a memo was sent by the then Minister for Finance to the Departments requesting that they cut back on expenditure.
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. How do you explain the increase in spending in the budget for 2008, given that tax receipts in 2007 were short by €2 billion?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. I think revenues contracted another 14% in 2008, and all of the spending increases for 2008 were reversed in the budget for 2009.
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: So given the €2 billion shortfall in 2007, this continuing shortfall in tax revenues wasn't anticipated into 2008 in drafting the budget?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. Were you ever concerned that the Government was not using fiscal policy appropriately to manage the economy following the adoption of the euro?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. What was your response to the European Council censure in February 2001 which said that they had "repeatedly urged the Irish authorities to ensure economic stability by means of fiscal policy, and it regretted that this advice was not reflected in the budget for 2001 despite developments in 2000 indicating an increasing extent of overheating"?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Let's leave that part of it aside for a moment. But the actual concern it was expressing about the management of fiscal policy. Brian Cowen said in his appearance before the committee - and this is using fiscal policy to counter for economic stability given that we didn't have monetary policy in our control anymore: "Such conditions do not appear to have received adequate attention over the...
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: But if we accept what Brian Cowen said to the inquiry, does that mean that the European Council censure in February 2001 was not given sufficient attention?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: And yet, despite this, Mr. Wright concluded that Ireland failed the test of prudent fiscal management. Do you agree with that?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Did you ever feel that the budgetary process was overwhelmed by the programme for Government or the social partnership process?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. You were a member of the McDowell group on the establishment of a single regulatory authority for the financial services sector. Why was your proposal for the new structure, the one that was favoured by Government ... Charlie McCreevy called it the McCarthy compromise?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Did the alterations requested by the ECB, did they have a material impact on the quality of our regulation?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Okay. In October 2009, in an interview in the Financial Times, Bertie Ahern was reported as stating that the decision to create a new Financial Regulator was one of the main reasons for the collapse of the Irish banking sector. Do you agree with this?
- Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (15 Jul 2015)
Eoghan Murphy: Do you take responsibility for the regulation ... the model of regulation that was adopted?