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Seanad
‹ Order of Business

NAMA transparency and asset sales

Summary

Senator Daly supports a debate on NAMA, alleging inadequate transparency and preferential property sales, and calls for a Minister to explain the agency’s operations and proposed Garda investigation.

I second the amendment to the Order of Business that a member of the Government come to the House today to discuss the revelations in relation to NAMA. I thank my colleague, Senator O'Brien, for raising this issue which I have raised on a number of occasions in the House. This is a serious issue. It has been in the ether for a long time that former developers have been benefiting in terms of buying back their own properties from NAMA. We have read in the newspapers that former members of NAMA are under suspicion in regard to their joining property development companies which are buying back their properties.

I have previously raised on the Order of Business the case of-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

The Senator may not speak about any specific case.

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-----Anglo Irish Bank which granted a loan for the Four Seasons-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

We cannot discuss individual cases here.

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This information was in the newspapers.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

There could well be legal cases. We cannot discuss the matter now.

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This one is done and dusted.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

There could well be legal proceedings in relation to the matter.

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Some €50 million was spent-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

We are not discussing any particular case here.

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This is not a legal case. It is a matter of public record.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

The Senator may not speak about any specific case.

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Some €50 million has been spent on-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

Senator Daly, we are not discussing any specific case here in respect of which legal issues may arise.

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This is not a legal case. It is a matter of public record that €50 million was spent-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

This is a Parliament and the Senator is under privilege.

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This is a matter of fact.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

The Senator is under privilege.

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I know that.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

I am not allowing the Senator to discuss any specific case.

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This has nothing to do with privilege. It is a fact that-----

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

Excuse me. The Senator is speaking here under privilege. I am not allowing him to speak about any specific case or individual.

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This is not in relation to an individual. It is in relation to loans that are on the public record. Am I allowed to discuss those?

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

We are not discussing anything like that. This is the Order of Business. Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?

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I am asking the Leader about issues which I have raised previously in relation to lands that have been sold not only below market value but for less than that for which they were sold to NAMA. Properties for sale to developers or people in the know are not being made available to the public by way of list or advertisement in the newspapers and so on. We previously asked in the context of the NAMA and Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Transparency Bill that every asset for sale by NAMA would be available on a public list. This has not been done. As a consequence, the Garda Commissioner is to investigate NAMA, which is a serious issue. This matter has been ongoing for two years.

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Paddy Burke An Cathaoirleach Fine Gael

The Senator is way over time.

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What we need in NAMA is transparency for the good of NAMA, the taxpayer, NAMA employees and for the betterment of the structure of NAMA.

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I support the amendment to the Order of Business so that a Minister can come to the House to see if the Government knows what is going on in order to have transparency in NAMA.

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