Rogue bankers must be jailed before the nation can move on, Green Party chairman Dan Boyle has said.
Mr Boyle also told his party’s annual convention in Co Wexford that more executives must resign to draw a line under the “gross incompetence” of the past.
The Senator branded the actions of some bankers as treacherous because they had shamed Ireland and undermined its economy.
“Only when people are prosecuted for these actions, and people are imprisoned for the result of such actions, can we begin to believe that we are progressing as a nation,” he said to applause.
He also called for an end to the prevailing culture of ‘golden handshakes’ for retiring bank executives.
More than 600 Green Party delegates gathered in eco-friendly White's Hotel for the three-day convention, which has the theme Towards A Green New Deal.
Some 83 candidates will be contesting seats in the forthcoming local elections in June. About 29 per cent of hopefuls are female and the average age is 41.
Mr Boyle also said the Government must be more honest with citizens about the difficult economic conditions.
“That honesty has to extend to say things that things are more likely to become more difficult before they become easier,” he told delegates.
Delegates have voted against a controversial motion to enter into talks with the other Dail parties with a view to establishing a national government.
Another motion called on the party leadership to consider the merits of such an administration. Green TD Ciaran Cuffe backed the issue but it also failed when it was put to a vote.
Mr Boyle said the government must offer confidence and hope to voters and he said the current recession can offer new opportunities to create thousands of jobs in a new green economy.
The former TD also called on officials with international experience to lead financial regulation watchdogs in the state.
“We need an open and transparent system of public appointments, so that it is realised that the people who are appointed to state bodies are appointed on merit alone. We are in government to insist those changes are brought about.”
The rules must be changed on political fundraising, which has encouraged corporate donations, he claimed.
The Green’s finance spokesman said the biggest fear of the recession is the scourge of long-term unemployment.
“We must offer incentives for workers to re-enter the workforce,” he explained.
PA