THE ANGLO Irish Bank affair claimed another high-profile casualty last night with the resignation of Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) chairman Gary McGann amid warnings from the Government of an “outflow of funds” from the economy.
One of five non-executive directors to stand down en masse last month from the board of the State’s third largest financial institution, Mr McGann said in a statement on his resignation from the DAA that he had “acted with honesty and integrity” at all times in Anglo.
Another former Anglo non-executive director, Anne Heraty, is understood to have told the Government that she is considering her position on two State boards: Bord na Móna and Forfás. Her departure is considered imminent.
With detectives from the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation now involved in the widening investigation into possible breaches of company law at Anglo, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan said on RTÉ radio last evening there were “stresses in the markets” in recent weeks. “There has been some outflow of funds – it has not reached a critical level,” he said. Mr Lenihan said it was crucial for Ireland to retain international confidence to attract funds. “It’s a battle for financial survival,” he added. “We have to keep working at it.”
In a further reflection of deepening Government concern about the economic situation, Minister of State for Finance Martin Mansergh warned that any failure to implement the pensions levy and other savings this year would leave the Irish economy requiring emergency support “inside the euro zone or outside”. This would leave Ireland being run by outside forces and current complaints would look like a “storm in a teacup”, he said.
Officers from the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation and Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) yesterday raided the offices of Anglo Irish Bank as part of their investigation into possible company law breaches.
At least 16 detectives from the fraud bureau and the ODCE searched the St Stephen’s Green offices of the bank, which was nationalised in controversial circumstances last month. The detectives examined paper and electronic documents and computers and other materials.
The raids were conducted after a detective at the ODCE secured three search warrants at the Dublin District Court on Monday.
Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said he would ensure that the ODCE had adequate staff and resources to carry out its work. “We operate the rule of law. As far as I am concerned, that provides that, whether you have a balaclava, a sawn-off shotgun or a white collar and designer suit, the same rules apply,” he said.
In the Dáil, Taoiseach Brian Cowen said the investigations at Anglo were a matter for the “requisite authorities” and that the Government “does not intervene in such investigations”. Mr Cowen said he did not want to say anything that would prejudice any possible future civil or criminal actions.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the latest developments at Anglo Irish were “another hammer-blow to the creditworthiness of Ireland Inc”.
The searches at the bank came as Irish shares fell to their lowest level in almost 14 years. The Iseq index dropped below 2,000 points for the first time since June 1995, before rising slightly to close at 2,034. Irish Life Permanent’s shares fell 26 per cent from 95 cent to 70 cent. This values it at just €194 million.
