Minister refuses to provide unedited affidavit on private AIB court hearing

THE MINISTER for Finance has refused to release an unedited copy of an affidavit relating to a High Court hearing about AIB behind closed doors on December 23rd.

In a written reply to a parliamentary question by Fianna Fáil backbencher Ned O’Keeffe, Brian Lenihan said the High Court had ordered that there be no publication of particular paragraphs of the affidavit sworn at the hearing by William Beausang, an official at the Department of Finance.

“It is not possible or appropriate, therefore, to release the full unredacted affidavit,” Mr Lenihan wrote.

The Minister applied to the High Court before Christmas seeking to have a private – or in camera – hearing, using the Government’s new sweeping bank restructuring legislation. Lawyers for Mr Lenihan asked for two Irish Times reporters present, Simon Carswell and Mary Carolan, to be excluded from the proceedings.

The court application related to the Government’s injection of a further €3.7 billion into AIB. The application to have the matter heard in private was made under a provision of section 60 of the Credit Institutions (Stability) Act on the grounds that it related to a matter of “extreme commercial sensitivity”.

Mr Lenihan said he would provide Mr O’Keeffe with a copy of the order granted by the High Court in relation to AIB. However he would neither release a copy of the affidavit nor would he tell his Fianna Fáil colleague the reason why the request for an in-camera hearing had been made.

“Both the application that the matter be heard otherwise than in public under section 60 of the Credit Institutions (Stabilisation) Act (and the reasons advanced), as well as the application for the direction order itself, were heard in camera by direction of the court,” the Minister responded.

“It is not appropriate, therefore, for me to detail the reasons for the application,” he wrote.