Martin Mansergh (Fianna Fail)

The Senator does us too much credit as the circumstances he outlines would have developed anyway. There are many other jurisdictions including ones which charge little or no tax. I do not accept that our actions made a significant difference to the global scene. We no longer have exchange controls and a series of closed economies around the world, nor do we have a fortress Europe. We may not like the implications, but it is a scenario we must accept and work with. If we do not, we will simply find ourselves falling behind as employment and investment go elsewhere.

The Bill is very technical and illustrates the heavy reliance of Government in areas like this on professional advice from civil servants, financial advisors and lawyers. Government can address any political issues which arise, the main one being the importance of protecting the reputation of our financial services by ensuring abuse does not take place. There is undoubtedly a trade-off in creating the degree of regulation required to prevent abuse while avoiding weighing down the system in a way which leads bona fide firms to find it more attractive to relocate. I note with some amusement that legislative requirements provide the source of the advertising clichés with which we are bombarded on morning radio to the effect that past performance may not be a reliable guide to future performance and that investments may fall as well as rise in value. The Government is to blame rather than the advertising and insurance industries, or even the EU. I accept that these warnings, of which the Bill addresses one or two I have not seen before, are necessary to counter any attempt to oversell or hype products.

I welcome the Bill and encourage the Government to continue to pay close attention to the financial services sector. It has been one of the major success stories of the economy over the last 20 years.