Governor of Central Bank calls for inquiry into bank crisis

[Eamonn20Bn plus interest]

Governor of Central Bank calls for 9/11-style inquiry into crisis - The Irish Times - Wed, Dec 16, 2009

"Speaking at his first appearance before an Oireachtas committee since being appointed governor in September, Dr Honohan said new models of inquiry involving not just politicians but experts such as economists and social scientists should be explored to understand how the crisis occurred.

“The crisis is not simply a question of discovering who did what and who knew what,” he told the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Economic Regulatory Affairs.

“Understanding the deep roots of the crisis will require expertise and broad scientific understanding more than merely forensic skills.”"

Will the media now get fully behind Honohan's call and keep campaigning until we get the inquiry? Will we get a full scale inquiry of the kind he advocates and will it get to the truth?

[HanleyS]

That made me vomit a little. We don't need another toothless irrelevant public inquiry. Save the cash for something less wasteful. The FF GE Election campaign / NDP 2012 to 2017 maybe.

[Eamonn20Bn plus interest]

That made me vomit a little. We don't need another toothless irrelevant public inquiry. Save the cash for something less wasteful. The FF GE Election campaign / NDP 2012 to 2017 maybe.

It looks like FF will be in power until mid-2012. It would be better to have a good enquiry now - if it is offered - than a perfect one in two and a half years time when all the horses are long bolted. It's been a year and three months since the blanket bank guarantee (which almost brought down the country). The media in general have so far let the government away scot free on the banking collapse. That needs to change.

[PaddyJoe McGillycuddy]

Certainly we need an enquiry but its terms of reference and the composition of the enquiry team are vitally important. What we don't need is another tribunal which will rumble on for 10 years and cost many millions. A beefed up Public Account Committee with the power to compel witnesses to appear would be a start. Bring in some outside UK or US banking and property experts and give them the authority to go into the main banks and start digging.
Not going to happen of course. There are at least two investigations going on into Anglo which have dragged on for over a year now and have produced nothing whatsoever.
NAMA's primary objective is to protect the secrets of the bankers and developers from the scrutiny of the market.
However a call like this from a new Central Bank chief is going to be difficult to bat away. Interesting to see how Lenihan deals with it. First he will consider it for 3 or 4 months. Then if he goes with it it will take at least 6 months to establish the terms of references; another six to set it up and another six for it produce even the bones of an interim report.
Don't hold your breath!

[ALAN42]

Yes lets have an inquiry because we do them so well in Ireland . It will be big , span about 5 years and will involve hundreds of witnesses who will have trouble remembering anything at all . The legal people will make a fortune and at some time in the future it will release a report that says that the Irish banks were poorly regulated . Nobody will get punished as the inquiry will have no power to recommend criminal charges .

Somebody will stand up in the Dail and utter the line that is wheeled out when all inquiries publish their reports " It must never happen again "

[slx]

Why should we have a tribunal into what may possibly involve a whole series of criminal acts, fiduciary, contract, duty of care breeches etc?

Won't this just prejudice any further legal proceedings which may need to be taken, thus prevent criminal prosecutions and possible civil actions?

We need the Garda Fraud Squad to go in, find evidence and send files to the DPP.

Why should white collar crime, or political corruption be treated any differently to any other type of crime and given the luxury of a tribunal or enquiry ??

In this Republic we are supposed to be equal before the law. Yet, if one of us were to be taken to court for say drunk driving, would we have the opportunity to have a public tribunal of enquiry, which would prevent us from ever being taken to court??

[DCon]

Discussing this on Radio 1 now. Shane Ross thinks it will not happen as Cowen was Finance Minister at the time and is culpable.

[Digout]

Every muppet working for the department of finance must be fired. Brian Clowen should be nailed to a post and stoned.

[DCon]

Every muppet working for the department of finance must be fired.

You could simply keep all the ones who have a PhD in Economics.

[Harmonica]

However a call like this from a new Central Bank chief is going to be difficult to bat away. Interesting to see how Lenihan deals with it. First he will consider it for 3 or 4 months. Then if he goes with it it will take at least 6 months to establish the terms of references; another six to set it up and another six for it produce even the bones of an interim report. Don't hold your breath!

We definitely need leadership on this issue & that means a report has to be Commissioned. The report of course needs to be compiled by the same financial "experts" who have been advising the government, banks & developers. Then we will need a department report to analysis the findings of the report.