Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Leader has outlined the process the Committee on Procedure and Privileges completed. As a member of the committee, I attest to the great deal of detailed discussion and questioning in which we engaged, with the assistance of legal advice and Seanad staff. I thank the staff involved who deserve great credit for all the work they did in producing a detailed proposal, which works in to the terms of reference that must be passed by the Seanad. The Fianna Fáil Party in the House will support the terms of reference.

I raised concerns in the Committee on Procedure and Privileges about the nature of the inquiry. I still believe that enacting the Tribunals of Inquiry Bill 2005 would have been a better approach. I also expressed concerns, which were minuted, with regard to the tight timeframe for concluding the joint committee's inquiry by 30 November 2015. Completing all the investigative work, hearings and so forth by this date will be a significant challenge. I am also concerned that the joint committee may select the areas into which it will inquire on the basis that it will not have sufficient time to address 22 separate matters.

To be fair to the Government, I accept that a referendum on the scope of parliamentary inquiries was defeated early in its term of office and this defeat complicated matters somewhat. Nevertheless, the banking inquiry team must make clear that the proposed terms of reference are highly restrictive in nature. I am concerned that the general public will be far from satisfied with what is being proposed in so far as the inquiry will be exceptionally restrictive as to findings of fact and the areas that can be covered. For example, areas in which criminal proceedings and investigations are under way are excluded. This effectively prevents investigation of most aspects of Anglo Irish Bank's role because court cases are pending in this area. Furthermore, Cabinet confidentiality, as provided for in the Constitution, means that Ministers and others who held office at the time of the guarantee will not be able to answer questions, even if they wished to do so. We have indicated to Deputy Ciarán Lynch, the Chairman of the inquiry, that the joint committee must be careful about how these elements are addressed.

The Oireachtas could not produce a perfect solution. I am more than satisfied, however, that, in the time available to us, we debated and asked a series of questions regarding the proposal presented to us. The terms of reference we have produced are the best we could do. I wish the joint committee well in fulfilling what will be an onerous task.

It was good that there were no dissenting voices in the Committee on Procedure and Privileges and members worked together as a group. Despite the misgivings some of us had about various matters, the committee was able to reach an agreement. Senator Cummins referred to a specific amendment proposed by the Committee on Procedure and Privileges regarding the role played by membership of the euro and the relative strength of sterling. This is an important issue.

I outlined some of my concerns to the Committee on Procedure and Privileges. Notwithstanding my concerns and however imperfect it will be, the inquiry must proceed because people want answers. I hope they will not be disappointed as I fear the nature of the inquiry will not deliver all the answers they seek.

I fully support the motion and the other motions on the Order Paper. The sooner the inquiry is up and running and the inquiry team is doing its job and interviewing witnesses, the better.