Michael D'Arcy (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Like Senator Barrett, I must temper my comments as I am a member of the banking inquiry. I welcome a number of things. First, it is good to have an experienced judge in this sector. It is not going to be easy for anybody to take a fair view in terms of how analysis is conducted of the size of these loans. These are loans of tens of millions of euro, and potentially hundreds of millions of euro, and the analysis must be conducted on like with like. Mr. Justice O'Keeffe is an experienced judge in this area, which is very good.

I must take issue with my colleague, Senator Darragh O'Brien. We do not usually bang heads over issues but when he says that the track record of this Government is not great, I must remind Members of what IBRC is. This is information I have from the banking inquiry which has been put on the record. IBRC is the merger of Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide Building Society. The loan book of Anglo Irish Bank was 82% commercial real estate lending, 1% mortgage residential lending and 17% corporate lending. That is what is involved. Irish Nationwide Building Society had a loan book of €10 billion and it lost half of it, which is unprecedented and unheard of in practically any jurisdiction. That is what we are examining, and I welcome the opportunity to do so.

It is very easy to create doubt and throw mud, and much mud has been thrown on this issue. I am glad there will be an opportunity for this to be independently and objectively analysed in respect of losses of €10 million or more. People continually ask me, as a member of the banking inquiry, where the money went and how the €40 billion this State put into lending and financial institutions vanished. It did not vanish. It went into losses of this nature and in particular on losses in NAMA. Eventually I believe we will have to conduct an analysis of where all of the losses went in the banking sector. However, that is for another day, not this occasion. The NAMA write-off was €42 billion. When I was elected to the other House in 2007, that was equivalent to our national debt. That has been left aside; it will be a conversation for another day. This commission relates to potential losses of €10 million or more in IBRC.

I accept that there is public concern about this matter, and I welcome the Minister taking the opportunity to allay fears by setting up this commission. I look forward to analysis that is clear and unequivocal. Like Senator O'Brien, I hope there is nothing untoward. There is nothing easier than to say that something dodgy went on. One keeps kicking that about and, God knows, there are plenty of commentators who are able to kick that about and create the doubt. I believe it was Disraeli who said that a lie gets half way around the world before the truth gets its boots on. I certainly hope Mr. Justice O'Keeffe will be able to get to the bottom of this matter.

Regarding Siteserv, there has been much analysis about that already.I believe Mr. Walter Hobbs of Virgo Capital provided a good service for the State. Appearing on "Prime Time" a number of weeks ago, he was unequivocal in dealing with the matter. It is also good that the agents and advisers of IBRC will be subject to analysis. Let us have it all out in the open and put all of the information on the table in order that the process of throwing mud in the hope it will stick will fail.

I wish to finish by mentioning the role of the Minister in the matter. We have been fortunate to have him and I am not one to give plaudits easily. As has been said in the other Chamber, he has probably been the best Minister for Finance in the history of the State and his actions in this matter underpin that statement. The sooner we have the information and the commission concludes its investigation the better in order that we can verify that nothing untoward happened.