Vol. 548 No. 5
49 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Finance if he has received a report from the Central Bank on the progress of the investigation on behalf of AIB Bank into a reported fraud; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5551/02]
I have already dealt with the substance of this question in my reply to the priority question put down by Deputy Jim Mitchell. I have not yet received a report from the Central Bank into the events in question, on the lessons to be learned from this episode and what legislative changes, if any, might be appropriate to strengthen the regulatory system as it applies to credit institutions.
So far, the Central Bank has told my Department that it has sent two officials to Baltimore head office of Allfirst Bank. These officials have been working with officers of the Federal Reserve, the primary regulator of Allfirst Bank, to confirm the scale of the losses involved, to identify how these losses were run up and why procedures failed to detect them in good time.
The role of the Minister for Finance is to bring forward legislative proposals for the regulation of the financial sector. Once the necessary legislative framework is in place, day-to-day responsibility for the supervision of credit institutions is a matter for the Central Bank. The Central Bank is statutorily independent in the exercise of its supervisory and regulatory functions. When the details of the events in question are known, the Central Bank will take all appropriate action, such as, no doubt, the strengthening of internal control arrangements and closer monitoring of subsidiaries.
Doubtless, AIB Bank itself will inform the public as to the outcome of its investigation. The Deputy will be aware that AIB Bank has appointed an eminent person with appropriate experience to report on what happened at Allfirst Bank.
I am conscious that the Minister has already responded to a priority question on this issue. Has he had any direct contact with the management of AIB Bank and what was the nature of that contact? Will the Minister confirm the response given to me on the Order of Business two weeks ago by the Taoiseach, when he indicated the Bill to set up the single regulatory authority would be published but was unlikely to be taken before the dissolution of the Dáil?
I was informed by the Governor of the Central Bank of the issue relating to the AIB Bank and I dealt with him. I was at a function in my county last night for AIB Bank Group at which the chief executive was present. We did not discuss this but it was referred to when we met. The event was attended by 200 other people. I have had informal contact of that nature but nothing else on the matter because it is not my responsibility and it would not be appropriate to deal directly with AIB Bank as Minister for Finance. That is a matter for the Central Bank.
The Bill, which is known as the Central Bank of Ireland Regulatory Authority Bill, is with the Parliamentary Counsel and is on the Whips' lists. It is hoped it will be published during this session.
Can the Minister confirm it will not be taken?
Unless we order our business in a very streamlined fashion, it will not be. The Bill is already over 200 pages long. It is a tome and has still not been finalised. Even if it were published, unless we changed many other Bills, it is unlikely it would be taken during this session. I hope it will be published because much time and money has been spent preparing this Bill. We engaged outside consultants and solicitors to help us and then sent it to the Parliamentary Counsel. Much money and time has been spent on the Bill which I hope to publish before the end of this session. I have invested much time in it, apart from all the negotiations that took take place in the lead up to it.
