I am advised by NAMA that it is precluded by the provisions of various Statutes and by banking confidentiality case law from disclosing details relating its debtors and assets, including property assets, securing its loans. However per latest published information for 31 March 2013, which is available on the NAMA website, www.nama.ie, NAMA debtors in aggregate owe close to €70 billion in par debt. All NAMA staff are employees of the NTMA and are assigned to NAMA by the NTMA. NAMA advises that, since inception, 59 staff assigned to it by the NTMA have left or are due to leave the Agency to take up employment elsewhere, including 53 who have returned or are returning to the private sector – 6 have moved to other businesses within NTMA. Some of those that have left were employed on short term contracts.
Under the NTMA business model, all employees are recruited on the basis of individually negotiated contracts. In addition to NAMA, the NTMA carries out a range of commercial asset and liability functions on behalf of Government and its ability to successfully perform these functions is critically dependent on its ability to attract employees – often with specialist skills – from the private sector, including those at middle and senior management level. That is the basis on which close to 300 staff have been recruited to NAMA from the private sector over the past three years and it would not have been possible to move from a standing start in December 2009 to become fully operational with a €32 billion balance sheet a year later without having that ability to recruit the appropriate expertise and experience from the private sector. Mobility with the private sector is a critical component of the NTMA model and it is important that the NTMA’s ability to attract employees from the private sector not be disrupted. In the case of NAMA, employees are recruited on the basis of specified purpose contracts – their employment lasts for as long as their function is required by NAMA only.
There are extensive safeguards in place to protect the confidentiality of information held by NTMA employees, including those assigned to NAMA. Employees assigned to NAMA by the NTMA, as is the case with all other NTMA staff, are subject to Section 14 of the National Treasury Management Agency Act, 1990 which prohibits an employee from disclosing any information obtained while carrying out their duties as employees of the NTMA. Employees assigned to NAMA are also subject to a prohibition on release of confidential data under Sections 99 and 202 of the NAMA Act 2009. NTMA employees, including those assigned to NAMA, are subject to the Official Secrets Act. Contravention of these prohibitions is a criminal offence. These protections do not cease at the point of resignation but rather apply indefinitely and extend to former employees.
The notice period for NTMA employees assigned to NAMA is typically three months. NTMA contracts for employees assigned to NAMA have a provision entitling the NTMA to place the employee on garden leave at any point during the notice period during the time the employee may not work for another employer.
Following a review of its policy in respect of notice periods and post-termination restrictions on employment, which was conducted on the NTMA’s behalf (as employer) by the law firm, Matheson, the NTMA is implementing a number of changes to its employment contracts, including the introduction of longer notice periods of 3 to 6 months (up from 1 to 3 months) for middle and senior management employees and garden leave provisions to be included in all new employment contracts. In addition, a new provision is being added in employment contracts, where relevant, that restricts departing staff from performing services for a new employer, during the first six months following the termination of their employment with the NTMA, relating to a transaction or other matter in respect of which they participated directly or substantially in the course of their employment with the NTMA and were in possession of confidential information as a result. In respect of NTMA employees assigned to NAMA, this provision has been introduced for all new employees and existing employees as they are promoted. As I pointed out above, the three-month notice period and garden leave provisions already apply to NTMA staff assigned to NAMA. Finally as I have stated previously I support interaction between the public and private sectors so as to bring fresh thinking and new ideas.
