Inquiry slates Fine Gael and DUP ministers over scandal-embroiled NAMA deal

ON THE DAY the 32nd Dáil convenes, Fine Gael Finance Minister Michael Noonan has been criticised for his failure to block the scandal-embroiled sale by NAMA of its property portfolio in the North – worth €1.6billion and the biggest property deal ever in the island of Ireland.

A report by the Assembly’s cross-party Finance Committee of an episode that began in 2014 has been described as “damning”.

The National Asset Management Agency – which describes itself as “a body created by the Government of Ireland in late 2009 in response to the Irish financial crisis and the deflation of the Irish property bubble” – has been roundly criticised for failing to appear before the Assembly’s Finance Committee's inquiry into the murky mess that surrounds NAMA's financial dealings.

Democratic Unionist Party ministers involved in the deal have also been described as being out of their depth in their handling of the NAMA sale.

Former First Minister and DUP leader Peter Robinson and DUP former Finance Ministers Sammy Wilson and Simon Hamilton were said to have had “insufficient professional advice to fully assess the strategic considerations” of the NAMA sale.

● Daithí McKay MLA and Mary Lou McDonald TD speak to reporters at Leinster House before PAC appearance

Stormont Finance Committee Chairperson Daithí McKay MLA (Sinn Féin) appeared before the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee last October and insisted that NAMA should appear before the PAC’s counterparts at Stormont if it had nothing to hide. He also urged Fine Gael Finance Minister Michael Noonan to use his influence to have NAMA executives appear. NAMA refused.

Today’s report states quite clearly that NAMA’s refusal to attend was “particularly unhelpful”.

NAMA – an Irish Government body – “needed to be more open and accessible, given the importance of the Project Eagle portfolio to the Northern Ireland economy”, the committee said.

NAMA Chairperson Frank Daly wrote in the Irish Times on 5 October:

“NAMA has nothing to hide, yet it appears that our critics have nothing to prove. To any objective observer it is clear that we have reached a stage where the scrutiny of Nama’s sale of its Northern Ireland portfolio (Project Eagle) is no longer about NAMA.”

At the time, PAC member and Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald TD said a few days before the NAMA chief’s article::

“NAMA and [NAMA Chairperson] Frank Daly need to make themselves available to the committee in the North in full committee session to answer the very many questions that arise in regard to the sale of the Northern loan book.”

She said attempts by them snub or obstruct the situation in the North was unacceptable:

“The sales process from start to finish was riddled with conflicts of interest, with payback monies and very serious questions for NAMA itself – the body that bears responsibility for safeguarding the interests of the taxpayer.”

Today's report by the North's cross-party investigation states:

“The committee notes with regret the decision of the NAMA board not to suspend the Project Eagle sales process once Pimco had disclosed to the agency in March 2014 that Pimco’s proposed fee arrangement with the Brown Rudnick international law firm included also the payment of fees to Tughans, a Belfast law firm, and to a former external member of NAMA, NIAC.

“From the evidence to date, the committee considers this development to be a core area of concern within the entire sale and purchase process.”

The committee says it is “unclear” why Finance Minister Noonan or NAMA did not suspend the sale “given the seriousness” of reports that former NAMA adviser Frank Cushnahan stood to be paid £5million by a prospective buyer.

On the release of today's report, Sinn Féin MLA Daithí McKay said:

“The sale of NAMA’s Northern loan portfolio was the biggest property deal ever in the North and raised serious questions about the manner in which it was conducted.

“I welcome this report from the Finance Committee into the sale as it puts 2,000 pages of evidence – including much material that was previously undisclosed – into the public domain.

“It found that Executive ministers had 'insufficient professional advice' to fully assess the strategic considerations in relation to the Project Eagle bidding process.

“The committee was rightly critical of Irish Government Finance Minister Michael Noonan and NAMA for the way they handled the sale.

“It also found that when issues came to light relating to the sale of the portfolio to Pimco, Michael Noonan did not inform the Executive.

“NAMA have stated that the Northern advisory committee had no access to commercially sensitive information even though members of the committee said they did. So further questions remain.

“This report highlights the need for a continuation of the review of the sale in the new Assembly and I hope the new Finance Committee will build on the work we have carried out.”