Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 140: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he has taken or plans to take arising from allegations of very serious irregularities in regard to the treatment of employees of a Turkish company (details supplied) which has been operating in this country; if all the workers have now been given access to money held in accounts in a bank in Holland; if he has considered requesting the Garda Síochána to conduct an investigation into allegations that money had been diverted into accounts to which the workers previously had no access; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12080/05]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The report of the labour inspectorate into the wages and hours worked by Turkish workers is the subject of a High Court injunction. Accordingly, I am not in a position to inform the Deputy concerning any of the contents or recommendations in the report. I cannot indicate definitively, at this stage, the specific actions which I may take with regard to these allegations.

Officials from my Department visited Finansbank in Holland on 14 and 15 April. The visit took place outside the scope of the labour inspector's report and outside the scope of the High Court injunction. This had been agreed with Gama Construction Turkey and Gama Construction Ireland prior to the visit taking place.

The purpose of the visit was to clarify the access of Gama workers, past and present, to the so-called Dutch accounts in the workers' names in Finansbank. My officials brought with them proxy forms supplied by Gama and Matheson Ormsby Prentice, solicitors, signed by some Gama workers, giving them access to their account details and also proxy forms, supplied by SIPTU and Deputy Joe Higgins, giving similar access.

In respect of all 16 accounts for which they had proxy forms, Finansbank supplied the following material: initial authorisation forms, authorising Finansbank to open a personal account in the name of the worker; initial payment authorisation forms, instructing Finansbank to transfer all incoming funds from the personal account into Ryder Investment N. V., and also bank statements.

In respect of 15 of the above accounts, supplied by Matheson Ormsby Prentice, solicitors, refund instructions had been signed by the workers. The Finansbank representatives were helpful in discussing all of these documents and their implications. In particular, Finansbank assured my officials that all 15 refund instructions had been completed successfully, as shown on the bank statements. They explained that Ryder Investment had given Finansbank an irrevocable standing order, such that if any Gama worker requested a refund of all the transfers that had been made from his personal account to Ryder Investment, Finansbank would make the refund with interest into the personal account.

They also assured my officials that all account requests from workers would be processed quickly via acceptable intermediaries, for example, Gama, Matheson Ormsby Prentice, SIPTU etc.

Over 600 refund requests went to Finansbank via Gama and Matheson, Ormsby Prentice last week and my officials were assured by Finansbank that such moneys as were in their Finansbank accounts had been transferred from Finansbank to their personal accounts in Is Bank in Turkey. I am not in a position to state whether the moneys have reached the individual workers' accounts and that they may gain access to the funds.

A further 200 plus requests for bank statements were submitted to Finansbank last Friday by SIPTU and Deputy Joe Higgins. My officials were assured that these requests would be processed by close of business yesterday 19 April. Late last night my officials received a listing of 231 account holders, account balances and the statement that the moneys were being transferred to a series of bank accounts in Is Bank in Turkey. Finansbank advises that these transfers, totalling €4,809,840.37 will have value from today. These transfers appear contrary to the instructions given by the account holders, namely, the Gama workers who, in accordance with the SIPTU proxy request, only wanted a statement of account. I am advised by Finansbank that the transfers from the individual accounts were effected "upon instructions of our principals Gama Endustri AS that we are in receipt of an irrevocable payment instruction from them to effect the below detailed transfers to the accounts on the Gama employees in Ireland".

I am somewhat surprised at this development as the agreement reached with the bank provided for the individual workers giving personal instructions to the bank as regards their accounts. I am not in a position to state whether the moneys have reached the individual workers' accounts and that they may gain access to the funds. My officials will make further inquiries.