Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank the Minister of State, Deputy Mansergh, for his outline of the Bill.

I am sure the Minister will agree that rushed legislation is bad parliamentary practice. It simply does not allow time for the type of detailed consideration of which this measure is worthy. I must protest that many speakers from this side of the House will not have an opportunity to contribute to the debate on this Bill.

The Minister of State said earlier that bad debts in respect of Anglo Irish Bank amounted to €70 billion. I accept the comment in respect of it being systemic and the knock-on effects in terms of inter-bank lending and so on. I understand the Minister of State's reasoning in that regard. I am sure the Minister will agree that the PricewaterhouseCoopers and Jones, Lang, LaSalle reports, while recent enough, are now dated. The situation is changing daily and the problem is a rolling one, one that no one, not even Government with all the expert advice available to it, could be expected to get on top of. Nobody has a crystal ball and nobody knows what will change from day to day. The truth is we need time to address this issue. What one might judge to be bad today might not be bad six months down the line. We know that the major banks are rolling over and are restructuring, which is right. It is what is needed if we are to save our banking system and our economy. I look forward to hearing the Minister's response to those points.

The Minister spoke some time ago about rationalisation and stated that for the good of our economy the number of banks may be reduced from six to two. He is now saying that Anglo Irish Bank will continue as a going concern, although in public ownership, and will operate at arms length from the Minister for Finance, as major shareholder. Will the Minister be nudging a certain realignment given his previous position in respect of rationalisation? Given the time available, I can only be bitty in dealing with all the matters that need to be raised.

Neither the Minister in his Second Stage speech in the Dáil nor the Minister of State in his Second Stage speech in this House this evening referred to Anglo Irish Bank being made a dustbin bank. I take it the Government will not be taking that approach. I am concerned — as I am sure is everybody else — about the following issue. Allied Irish Bank and Bank of Ireland have major branch networks throughout the land. It is important they continue to prosper and thrive. As I understand it, they are considered to be sound. Will the Minister improve their recapitalisation plan, if necessary? It is important the Minister responds on that matter.

It is important all major projects to which Anglo Irish Bank committed itself, in terms of financing, go ahead in an effort to save jobs. Senator O'Toole referred to the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority which is charged with supervision of auditing and accounting standards. The authority has not as yet commented on the role of the auditors and accountants of Anglo Irish Bank. Perhaps the Minister will comment on that matter. As stated earlier by other speakers, what happened, unknown or otherwise to the auditors, between Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide Building Society was a significant concealment. This has proved the Office of the Financial Regulator is not fit for its purpose and clearly too much was allowed to take place under the noses of its staff. Between IFSRA and the banks, they made a hames of the principled light touch approach. In performance or pursuance of their duties with the banks, they made as much impression as the bee on the back of the giolla deacair.