FF Leader’s Regret at Banking Inquiry Fiasco

Fianna Fáil Leader Micheál Martin TD has expressed his regret at the Taoiseach’s decision to abandon the democratic decision of the Oireachtas and impose additional Government members onto the Banking Inquiry Committee to ensure Government control.

Deputy Martin commented, “This has been a bad week for politics in Ireland.  With the admission from the Taoiseach that he wanted a majority on the banking inquiry to control its terms of reference, and then the decision to press ahead and impose an additional two Government representatives, the Government’s last shreds of credibility around political reform were abandoned.

“In their attempts to justify their actions, Government representatives from the Taoiseach and Tánaiste down have sought to mislead the public and have resorted to tired and meaningless political clichés. In their mismanagement of this process from beginning to end, they have also shown that they simply do not get it.  They do not understand why this is important.  They have learned nothing from their defeats in the Oireachtas Inquiries and Seanad Abolition Referendums.

“The Irish people want real political reform and three years ago they bought into the promises made by both Fine Gael and Labour.  Those promises have been completely abandoned.  In this banking inquiry, the Irish people wanted politicians to put aside petty politics and hoped that they could work together to get to the truth.  This week, the Government undermined that hope.

“For our part, Fianna Fáil remains committed to working independently and impartially to get to the truth.  We have committed two talented and hardworking representatives to the task.  It is a source of great regret that the Government has done so much damage to the credibility of that work before it even begins.”