Clouds linger over Leinster House as bankers' pay leads to stormy session

DÁIL SKETCH:Government had no respite as Opposition urged action over payments to Fingleton, writes MICHAEL O'REGAN

THERE WAS little respite yesterday for the Government from the financial cloud hanging over Leinster House.

Ministers and TDs awoke to the revelation of the €221,000 Michael Fingleton received for his final four months as chief executive of Irish Nationwide last year.

This was on top of the €1 million bonus he received just weeks after the Government introduced the State bank guarantee.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny was incredulous. “Every day we come here it seems there is another unveiling of a litany of scandal in the financial world,” he said. He claimed that the banks had “snubbed their noses at the high office occupied by the Taoiseach, treating him and his office with utter disrespect”.

Kenny suggested that legal action should be taken, if necessary, to recover the €1 million from Fingleton.

The occupant of the high office looked grim, as did his Government colleagues.

“We have made it clear that we fully support the board’s ongoing efforts to recoup the bonus from Mr Fingleton in accordance with the commitment made by the former chief executive,” said Brian Cowen.

“How is it getting on?” asked Fine Gael’s Padraic McCormack.

“Fat chance,” observed party colleague Seán Barrett.

Labour leader Eamon Gilmore resumed his pursuit of Brian Cowen’s level of knowledge of the advancing financial ash cloud during his time as minister for finance between 2004 and 2008.

On Tuesday, said Gilmore, the Taoiseach had “presented members with a picture that while the banks were running the country, he and his colleagues were sitting around the Cabinet table hearing no evil seeing no evil as far as matters being amiss was concerned”.

Cowen recalled that the House had decided in 2003 to set up an independent regulatory authority.

“That system has not served us sufficiently well, as we now know from all that this happened, but I was not responsible for supervising financial institutions,” he added.

High finance gave way to local matters on the Order of Business when Independent Finian McGrath wanted an emergency debate on the need to restore a full bus service for residents of Marino and Fairview in his Dublin North Central constituency.

The Taoiseach seemed relieved to be temporarily free of financial matters.

Fine Gael’s James Bannon warned that Minister for the Environment John Gormley’s proposed ban on hunting would destroy a “rural way of life, heritage, tradition and tourism”.

And he claimed that the “green tail is wagging the brown republican dog all over the country”. The Taoiseach was not drawn on the taunt about the Soldiers of Destiny.

The financial ash cloud surfaced again during the resumed debate on the Central Bank Bill when Labour’s Joan Burton raised the pension top-up for Bank of Ireland chief executive Richie Boucher.

“The ordinary public servant looks at Mr Boucher and wonders what particular inner track he has with the governing party,” she added.

“None,” replied Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan.

The financial ash cloud is unlikely to lift for a long time to allow the beleaguered Government some plain sailing.