Sir, - The Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, deserves no credit for the Celtic Tiger, contrary to what Kevin Myers suggests (An Irishman's Diary, September 15th).
The key question about the Irish boom is why the Republic's economic growth rates, which were 3 to 4 per cent a year in the 1970s and 1980s, doubled to 7 to 8 per cent a year in 1994, and remained doubled since then. I suggest that the principal reason for that was the 1993 devaluation and the fact that the period 19931999 was the only time in the history of the Irish State that it effectively allowed its currency exchange rate to float. The resulting highly competitive exchange rate boosted exports, output and employment and doubled economic growth. The weakness of the euro since we signed up to it last year has boosted that competitiveness further. It has nothing at all to do with Mr McCreevy.
In 1997, when Mr McCreevy was Fianna Fail's Opposition spokesman on finance, I sought a meeting with him on behalf of the National Platform organisation to urge him to oppose Ireland's joining the euro. In the course of an hour's discussion in his Dail office he made it clear that he thought membership of the euro-zone would not be in the country's interests. At that time the French socialists, who were sounding euro-critical, were being tipped to win the French elections and were thought likely to clobber the single currency project. "And a good thing too," Mr McCreevy said to me, or words to that effect. Subsequently, on Fianna Fail getting into government, he became Minister for Finance and began speaking in glowing terms of the euro as if it were the best thing ever for the country. Because of that turnaround, I have little political respect for Mr McCreevy.
I do respect former Justice Hugh O'Flaherty however, because of the outstanding legal judgements he handed down, at least in cases I have some knowledge of, in particular the McKenna case. When I heard that Mr O'Flaherty had the singular misfortune of being proposed by Mr McCreevy as vice-president of the European Investment Bank, I took down my copy of the Treaty of Rome, where the statute of the bank is set out as Protocol A. It was quite clear from reading it that neither the Irish Government nor Mr McCreevy, as one of the governors of the bank, had any right whatever to nominate a vice-president. ail, the media and the public by claiming otherwise. The Supreme Court confirmed this view in its judgement in the Denis Riordan case.
The statute of the European Investment Bank makes it clear that the sole and exclusive right of nomination to the seven lucrative bank vice-presidency positions rests with its board of directors, not with the board of governors nor with any particular governor. The directors propose names to the board of governors, who then make the appointment. Clearly what has been happening over the years is that the EU member-governments and their representatives on the EIB board of governors, Mr McCreevy among them, have arrogated to themselves the right to nominate for these positions as an exercise in political patronage; and the bank's directors have compliantly acted as a rubber stamp for these nominees, in clear violation of the provisions of the bank's statute and the Treaty of Rome of which it is a part.
Mr McCreevy has no more right to nominate his civil servant, Mr Michael Tutty, as EIB vice-president than he had to nominate Mr O'Flaherty. Mr Tutty in turn should not allow himself to be designated as the Government's and Mr McCreevy's favourite in this way, as against the many other potential Irish candidates for this top banking position who deserve to be considered if the job were properly advertised and applicants sought in the normal fashion on a level-playing-field basis.
As a governor of the European Investment Bank, Mr McCreevy and his fellow governors, and the bank's board of directors, should insist that the provisions of the bank statute are properly complied with, and that fair and open procedures are put in place for soliciting and deciding on suitable applicants for these vice-presidency positions. But one should not hold one's breath that this will happen. - Yours etc.
Anthony Coughlan, Secretary, The National Platform, Crawford Avenue, Dublin 9.