Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I second the amendment to the Order of Business proposed by Senator Darragh O'Brien. I concur with the Senator's comments on the commencement order. I also share the views expressed by Senator Bacik on the need to ensure no action is taken that would interfere with the criminal proceedings taken against individuals in the banking sector. When one discusses this issue with members of the public one finds that they speak not of what occurred on the night of the banking guarantee but what happened afterwards, especially in the banks. The views expressed in this regard are sustainable and valid.

I am concerned by today's media reports which indicate the Government is already engaging in spin with regard to the terms of the banking inquiry. It seems the inquiry's remit will not extend beyond the night the bank guarantee was introduced and it will not take into account the findings of two reports, the Regling-Nyberg and Honohan reports, which have already been published. Both reports, which are based on interviews with economists and others, conclude there is no smoking gun or information that is not already in the public domain, whether published in book form or broadcast in the media. The question one must ask, therefore, is whether the Government is indulging in a political witch-hunt? Is the purpose of the inquiry to attack Fianna Fáil rather than finding out the truth? It is notable, for example, that the media are reporting that the inquiry will start in the months immediately preceding the local and European elections.

We must have an open and transparent debate on what will be the precise terms of reference of the inquiry, what it will investigate and who will be called before it. It is vital that the immediate aftermath of the banking guarantee is also investigated. As previous speakers noted, people suffered as a result of the banking collapse. Notwithstanding the political decisions that were taken, the pertinent issue is the collapse of the banks. What happened in the banks and what were they doing? On the night of the banking guarantee and the days preceding it, the banks lied through their teeth to the Government of the day in respect of what they were seeking. Anglo Irish Bank, in particular, published public relations documents a week or two weeks before the bank guarantee in which it encouraged people to buy shares in what was already a discredited bank.