Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 313: To ask the Minister for Finance if the governors of the Central Bank had been informed, or had agreed, to a CIA monitoring system on Bank transfers here; his views on whether such transfer of information, as was involved, has a legal basis; and the discussions which took place between his Department, the Central Bank, the European Central Bank or the European Commission in this regard. [26138/06]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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It is understood from recent media reports that the US authorities as a means of identifying terrorist financing have had access to information from a financial industry owned co-operative based in Belgium that transmits electronic messages among banks worldwide to facilitate financial transactions.

My Department was not aware of this data transfer until these press reports were published in the media. The Deputy may wish to note that the activities of the relevant messaging intermediary are overseen, in so far as they relate to the maintenance of financial stability, by a committee drawn from the major central banks under the leadership of the National Bank of Belgium. The Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland is not a member of the oversight committee.