Independent TD Catherine Murphy has called on the Government to order a full independent inquiry into a number of IBRC transactions, including the 2012 sale of Siteserv to a company controlled by Denis O'Brien.
Ministerial briefing notes, prepared by officials at the Department of Finance, which have been released to the TD, reveal concerns within the department that "a large number of transactions were poorly executed" by IBRC.
The documents reveal serious tensions between IBRC and the department over issues including the relationship framework that was drafted to govern the relationship between the department and the State-owned bank.
The deal for Siteserv, which was sold to Denis O'Brien's Millington for €45 million, is singled out for criticism by officials in the briefing note, ahead of a July 2012 meeting between Michael Noonan and Alan Dukes, the chairman of IBRC, and its chief executive Mike Aynsley.
Officials told the minister they believed that transaction “resulted in a less optimum return for the bank”, and recommended that Mr Dukes be asked to conduct a full “independent” review of the sale process.
Siteserv has always maintained that the sale process was conducted properly, while Mr Noonan has previously said he was assured at the meeting with IBRC that the best result for the State was achieved.
Ms Murphy said the documents highlight “obvious contradictions” between the briefing notes and replies she has recently received to parliamentary questions submitted to Mr Noonan.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin raised the issue during leaders’ questions in the Dáil on Tuesday and asked Taoiseach Enda Kenny for an independent inquiry into the sale.
Mr Kenny said he had not been briefed on the issue.
Mr Martin said “there are huge potential conflicts of interest all over this deal. Let us remember that we are talking about a company whose subsidiary, Sierra, went on to win the largest contract to install water meters and has now become a very profitable company in itself.”
He added that “it has taken nearly a year and a half for people to get the most basic information from the system in regard to the transaction itself and how the deal was conducted”.
Ms Murphy told the Dáil there was a “conflict of interest” between Minister for Finance Michael Noonan’s reply to her when she first raised the issue and subsequent replies.
Mr Noonan had first told her IBRC operated at arm’s length from the State. Later he “conceded his department was concerned about the Siteserv deal but that he was satisfied it was in the best interest of the State”.
Later the department “conducted a full review of the deal and that following this review, the Department made a decision to second one of its officials to the board of IBRC to provide greater oversight”.
Minister of State Simon Harris said that at the time IBRC’s efforts, as a secured lender, “to maximise the recovery on its loans to Siteserv was considered to be in the ordinary course of business”.
He added: “IBRC was not required to consult the Minister for Finance on this matter in advance of making the decision to approve the sale of Siteserv.”
