Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 3 Nov 1992

Vol. 424 No. 8

Written Answers. - ACC Bank Sale.

Peter Barry

Ceist:

81 Mr. Barry asked the Minister for Finance the proposals, if any, he has in relation to ACC Bank; if privatisation is now inevitable; if the employees have been advised of the Government's intentions; if they were given guarantees about future employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

The Government has agreed in principle to offer ACC Bank plc for sale, and all interested parties will be given an opportunity to bid. A decision to sell will depend on sale terms acceptable to the Government being agreed with an interested party. As stated in the Programme for Economic and Social Progress, the Government will consult the board of the company and the trade unions concerned if shares in a State company are being sold. A meeting with the trade unions representative of the bank's employees will take place shortly. In addition, the matter has been discussed recently with the Social Partners at the Central Review Committee of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress, in line with Section V, Paragraph 84 of that Programme.

No guarantees have been given to employees of the bank about future employment.