Vol. 457 No. 3
2 Mr. McCreevy asked the Minister for Finance the current position regarding his proposals for An Post and the credit unions in view of his stated consideration of the best way to restructure the State banking sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15247/95]
69 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Finance the timescale for completion of proposals for a third banking force; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15255/95]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 and 69 together. Options for restructuring the State banking sector have been reviewed by my Department and are currently being examined by myself and a number of my Government colleagues. The role of An Post and of the credit unions is one of the many issues which have arisen during the review process. This is, of course, a matter which will be put to Government for decision. It would be wrong of me to make detailed statements about what may happen until the matter has been resolved by Government. However, I recognise that this process has been going on for some time. I am very keenly aware of the need to ensure that employees and management in the institutions which have been publicly linked with the restructuring process should not be adversely affected by uncertainty regarding the eventual outcome. This also applies to the institution itself. This is why I have been at all times available to those most closely involved and have had very numerous meetings with all the participants. My door has always been and still remains open to them.
During the Minister's first Question Time, I think it was the second day the Dáil sat, he said in reply to a question from me — and I believed him at the time — that this debate would be brought to a conclusion very shortly. I have been patient because of the Minister's predicament of having had to find a new bedfellow. However, I think this idea of "hasten slowly" has gone too far. I could produce myriad quotes from briefings to journalists last February stating "it is imminent and the work will be carried out next week or the week after". Nothing happened. This has turned into a farce. I suggested some time ago in a spirit of co-operation that it would be a decision to say we are not going ahead with this idea. The likelihood is that with all the different items in the pot there will be a "mixum gatherum" decision bad for all the institutions concerned. When will this be brought to a conclusion? I think I know the Minister well enough to say that he would like this to be brought to a conclusion and I would advise him strongly to stop this nonsense.
I share the Deputy's concern. I want to ensure that whatever decision is made is the best possible decision from the point of view of the economy, the banking sector and the people involved in the various institutions to which the Deputy's question refers. I think a hasty decision, simply to bring this matter to a close to avoid the problems to which the Deputy referred, would not necessarily be the best way to do business.
I regret that more work was not done on this matter prior to my having responsibility for the portfolio. The sum of the considerations, particularly the consideration relating to the role of the credit unions, now a major player in the Irish financial sector for a vast number of our citizens, and the ongoing role of An Post which reaches out to an enormous number of people who otherwise would have no contact with the banking sector, was not in any way seriously addressed in the initial investigations which took place in the Department of Finance. I assure the Deputy that I share his concern and that we will arrive at a decision as soon as is practically possible, but we will arrive at the best possible decision rather than the most obvious one.
The idea of hastening slowly before making an overall decision is indeed a commendable one that should give great sustenance to politicians and business people throughout the country. However, in this regard there are only so many options on the table, and they have been discussed ad nauseam. A very worthwhile article was written by a journalist in The Irish Times some time ago which read like a comedy in the Gaiety Theatre — Democratic Left were for one thing; the Labour Party were for something else. All the options have been teased out and it is time to come to a decision, one way or the other. Is it likely that this decision will be made before the end of the year, given that a spokesperson from the Minister's Department said on the radio programme “This Week” that the Minister was not going to factor in any sums relating to the sale of the TSB in his 1996 budget calculations? This leads me to believe that the Minister does not expect anything to happen in the lifetime of this Government. He should be honest enough to admit that he cannot reach a conclusion, that he is giving up on the idea and will leave it to a new administration.
I would like to address the last part of the Deputy's supplementary question. It would be wrong to infer from that report that the 1996 budget was critically dependent on the proceeds of the sale of State assests. The fact that this has not been factored in at this point in no way indicates that we are not making satisfactory progress in this complex area. This is an area where public trust in the institutions is required, and nothing is more fundamental to public trust than their trust in the banking sector. It is for that reason that I am endeavouring to ensure we come up with the right answer in the present climate.
It is not the making of the decision that is complex but the different ideological stances taken by the various parties in Government. The decision-making process is quite simple.
I have to dissuade the Deputy from making statements.
The Minister has intimated that much additional work should have been done before he assumed office in the Department of Finance. The Minister's predecessor left outstanding reports which were ready to be decided upon at the end of 1994. It is not good enough that political decisions are put off because there are political differences between the Government parties. The Minister should make a decision.
Regrettably, the Deputy is ill-informed. Considerations relating to the future of banking post-EMU and the role of the Central Bank were not taken into account, nor was the role of new technology as applied to the credit unions and An Post.
That is nonsense.
