MINISTER FOR Finance Brian Lenihan said the Nama (National Asset Management Agency) Bill which would be introduced in the Dáil tomorrow had been agreed by the Green Party Ministers as well as the Fianna Fáil members of the Government.
Speaking after the first day of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting at the Hodson Bay Hotel near Athlone, Mr Lenihan expressed confidence that the Green Party TDs will vote for the legislation setting up Nama in the Dáil, despite reservations by some Green party members .
“Minister Gormley has discussed the matter with me and at this stage there is the possibility of looking at what social return will result from Nama. That is something that can be examined in the context of the committee stage of the Bill,” he said.
Mr Lenihan added that he was confident the Nama Bill would be passed by the Dáil because Green Ministers and Fianna Fáil Ministers had worked together on the project. “What the Green Ministers are concerned about and what I am concerned about is to sustain public confidence in this operation. Anything done by responsible politicians to achieve that is welcome.”
He added that the public should be given the maximum amount of information possible about the Bill and there was an onus on all of the political parties to listen to the views being expressed by people.
In the Dáil tomorrow, Mr Lenihan will make the crucial announcement about the overall amount Nama will pay to take over about €90 billion in impaired loans from the banks.
Mr Lenihan’s arrival at the hotel yesterday morning triggered a scuffle between protesting farmers and gardaí. The farmers burst through a security barrier and made it to the door of the hotel as they attempted to tell the Minister of the anger about recent cuts in farm spending. Later in the day students from the Athlone Institute of Technology protested against the possible reintroduction of university fees.
In Dublin, Green Party leader John Gormley insisted that 80 per cent of his party members favoured the establishment of Nama, in spite of the fact that only 13 per cent of them expressed support for the Nama Bill in its current form.
Speaking outside an international heritage conference in Dublin yesterday, Mr Gormley said a “lot of satisfaction” had been expressed at the Green Party conference last weekend with the changes made to the forthcoming Nama legislation.
“It is very clear that what the party wants is a version of Nama, but they want a new improved Nama and I think we’re getting there . . . What 80 per cent of the party wants is a version of Nama where we can have a social dividend.” The party members had made it clear that they wanted to see Nama work for the benefit of communities and schools, rather than wealthy individuals and big business.
“There was a lot of satisfaction expressed with the amendments that we have achieved thus far . . . the windfall tax was something that we’ve looked for, for may many years, and now I think what the party is saying very clearly is that we want a social dividend.”
Taoiseach Brian Cowen told his TDs and Senators at their meeting in Athlone that people needed “to get real” if they thought we could recover as a country without a good and viable banking system.
“People are free to oppose me, this party or this Government. They can support or reject our policies. But our whole motivation is securing the common good in difficult circumstances. I’ve heard all the catch cries about bailing out the banks etc. About bailing out whatever you are having yourself. That is cheap politics. It is politics without substance, without analysis and it doesn’t address the issues at stake. But it won’t distract me and it won’t deter this party from doing what is right by the people,” said Mr Cowen.