Cabinet to review extra capital for Anglo bank

TÁNAISTE MARY Coughlan has refused to “speculate” on reports that nationalised Anglo Irish Bank is to receive up to €10 billion in funding. But she said the Government “will consider whatever capital injection is necessary”.

She told the Dáil that the Garda investigation of Anglo Irish Bank and the inquiry by the Director of Corporate Enforcement was continuing.

“It’s a huge investigation. There are a considerable number of reports and interviews taking place.” Ms Coughlan was responding to Labour leader Eamon Gilmore who sharply criticised the length of time the criminal and corporate investigations were taking.

He also wanted to know how much extra money was to be given to Anglo Irish Bank following newspaper reports that the €3.8 billion already invested would be increased to €10 billion.

Mr Gilmore said that about the same time as the investigations began into Anglo Irish Bank, Bernie Madoff was arrested in New York. Since then he had been “tried, convicted and jailed for a total of 150 years”.

But “we’ve heard very little of anyone being called to book in relation to what happened in Anglo. The only thing we’ve heard was that there was a high-profile Garda raid in February. We’ve heard nothing about it since.

“And yesterday we’re told about eight directors who have €22 million in loans between them.”

He said: “This bank has been in the State’s ownership since January. I want to know two things: are we going to see someone brought to book here for what happened in Anglo? What is happening to the investigations that we were told was going on?”

Mr Gilmore also asked how much more money is going to be invested in Anglo Irish Bank? There was a figure mentioned over the weekend of the €3.8 billion being increased to €10 billion, he said.

He told the Tánaiste: “You said the Government will consider whatever capital is necessary . . . You’re not telling the hospitals that they’re going to get whatever money is necessary. You’re not telling the schools they’re going to get whatever money is necessary. You’re not telling any area of public life in this country that they’re going to get whatever money is necessary . . . but you’re saying the Government will provide whatever capital is necessary to keep Anglo Irish Bank alive. So how much is it?

Ms Coughlan said: “We would all share the frustrations in many ways . . . but unfortunately and unlike some others, we can’t be populist about this matter and in no way can we infringe in any way on the investigation.”

She said there was an option available to the Director of Corporate Enforcement, if he sees fit, to have an inspector appointed.

“We don’t direct him. He is independent.” She added that “our system of justice is not similar to the US and we have to deal with the present legislative measures that we have to deal with. It would be imprudent of myself or the Minister for Justice to direct someone”.

Agreeing that the US system of justice was not the same, Mr Gilmore said that “in the US they treat corporate wrongdoing more seriously than apparently we do here. The public is not reassured that the investigation is ongoing. That’s what worries the public. It’s going on and on forever and we haven’t seen any results from it yet”.

Ms Coughlan said the investigations were continuing and the Government could not intervene. She would not speculate about how much would be given to any bank. Due diligence is being done on the banks and “on the capital requirements that may be necessary”.