Catherine Murphy Siteserv PQ Summary

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Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

Ref/ Sequence 48159/14

Date 16 Dec 2014

1

48755/14

17th Dec 2014

2 4700/15

3

Summary Asked the Minister if he was satisfied that IBRC acted in the best financial interest of the State, if he was aware of higher bids, if he sought satisfactory answers as to why; if he questioned why same legal rep acted for seller and purchaser. 

Minister stated that IBRC operated “at arm’s length” and “it was a matter for the board” [of IBRC].

He did not answer if he was aware of any higher bids.

He said he was aware that KPMG and Davy ran a joint sales process to sell Siteserv.

He did not answer the question about the same legal representative acting for purchaser and seller.

He did not answer the question about whether he investigated the sale of the Siteserv.

He stated that he was advised that the Board of IBRC were satisfied that the sale represented the best return for IBRC.

Minster was asked to provide an itemised list of all disposals made by IBRC including detailed information about each. PQ applied to sales both before and after appointment of Special Liquidators 

4th Feb 2015

Minister replied that info relating to disposals was commercially sensitive. He included a link to the progress report of the Special Liquidators.

Minister was asked, further to PQ 48159/14, why he did not query the reason why such a large loss to the State occurred in the Siteserv transaction. 

Minister repeated that the sale was entirely a matter for the IBRC board.

He indicated that the sale of Siteserv did not meet the financial thresholds which would trigger mandatory consultation with the Dept Finance.

He did NOT inform the Deputy that a new relationship framework was put in place days after the Siteserv deal, under which the deal would have triggered mandatory consultation.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

8718/15

26th Feb 2015

4

He did NOT indicate that any review had taken place into the transaction.

He did NOT indicate that several meetings had taken place with IBRC officials, including one he attended himself, because of deep Departmental concerns about the sale.

He did NOT indicate that the Department had, as a direct result of the Siteserv deal, seconded a person in IBRC to provide more oversight.

Minister was asked for a copy of the Relationship Framework including the precise financial thresholds that would trigger mandatory consultation.  

9582/15

4th March 2015

5

Minister provided a link to the Relationship Framework. Clarifies that an impact of €100m on equity of the Bank is the threshold

Minister was asked, further to PQ 4700/15, why he stated that the sale of Siteserv did not result in mandatory consultation when it reportedly resulted in a net loss of over €100m; which he subsequently said was the threshold which would trigger such consultation. 

10566/15

6

10th March 2015

Minister finally clarifies that the Relationship Framework was only put in place on 29th March 2015, 14 days AFTER the sale of Siteserv on 15th March.  The previous Relationship Framework was one that was in effect from the 8th July 2009 and had no such thresholds. Minister was asked what consultation took place in advance of the introduction of the new Relationship Framework. What set of circumstances led to the introduction of the new Relationship Framework. 

Minister replied to state that RF’s were required under the EU IMF Bailout.

It followed considerable interaction with management of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 10967/15

12th March 2015

7

Minister was asked if he was aware that the sale of Siteserv included a portion of the sale price that was to be directed to shareholders (reportedly €5m), that several board members profited substantially personally from this deal. 

For first time, Minister admits that “following receipt of critical representations” the Department inquired about the transaction involving Siteserv.

Admits that a review took place into the transaction.

Admits that the review raised concerns about the quality of some the decisions being taken; including that a payment had been made to shareholders.

10965/15

12th March 2015

8

Admitted to having had a meeting with the Chair and CEO of IBRC and that they confirmed that the transaction was handled in the best possible manner to protect the State’s interest. Minister was asked when the Commission advised on the necessity of having a relationship framework in place and to what timeframe. 

Minister replied that these were agreed under the 3rd IMF/EU bailout review of September 2011

12628/15

9

26th March 2015

RF’s with 6 banks were put in place on 30th March 2012. Minister asked if he could confirm that higher offers were turned down during the sale process for Siteserv; if he was aware that if another, higher offer had been accepted it would have delayed the sale to the point that the new relationship framework would be in effect. 

Minister confirms that representations were made by an unsuccessful bidder to the Dept

Confirms that the transaction involving Siteserv was run by Siteserv and its advisors.

Admits that the review undertaken by his Department discovered that a higher bid for Siteserv was received AFTER an exclusivity agreement had been entered into with Millington.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 12546/15 12621/15

26th March 2015

10 11

Minister asked to list all meetings with IBRC regarding Siteserv and to release minutes and correspondence relating to same. Minister also asked if €10m credit facility was extended to Siteserv in advance of its sale.   

13119/15

1st April 2015

12 13118/15

Replies repeating the dates of meetings he had previously informed about. States that records, minutes, correspondence are subject to an FOI request. Reiterates that he directly told IBRC management that he was concerned about decision to let the sale process to be led by advisors of Siteserv; the decision to exclude trade buyers; the timing of exclusivity and the payment to shareholders. Replies that he is unable to comment on the €10m credit facility as it was not typical that this information would be disclosed under the relationship framework

Minister asked for detailed account of dialogue that took place between IBRC and Dept in advance of introduction of the relationship framework, including all correspondence. 

1st April 2015

13

Information is subject to an FOI request and a decision will be taken shortly on releasing said records. Minister asked to outline process which resulted in him being convinced that the sale of Siteserv represented the best outcome to the State’s interest; the number of bids received in both rounds; tender details, ranking of bids etc.  Admits that 50 candidates were identified and ultimately 8 bids shortlisted 

Stated that by the time of the meeting between John Moran and IBRC in August 2012 “no further action could be taken” despite the serious departmental concerns about the process.

15105/15

14

16th April 2015

Admits that a Dept Finance official was placed on secondment to IBRC with a view of maximising recovery for the taxpayer in IRBC transactions. Minister asked to state why secondment was made to IBRC; if this secondment was effectively an indication that he was not satisfied with the decisions being taken by IBRC senior management contrary to his numerous previous statements 

Replied with a list of responsibilities the seconded person undertook while at IBRC


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 

15107/15

16th April 2015

15

Restated his position regarding the obligations under the 2009 relationship framework Minister asked to make available copies of all reports and findings made by person seconded to IBRC during his time there; if his remit extended to transactions prior to his appointment. 

Replied with a list of responsibilities the seconded person undertook while at IBRC

Seconded person was not party to planning or preparation of ultimate liquidation in Feb 2013

15708/15

21st April 2015

16

15637/15

17

21st April 2015

Department has no records of any transactions which seconded person worked on as these were matters for IBRC at that time Minister asked directly for the number of bids which were received during the first round of the sale of Siteserv and if the successful bidder was among them. 

8 bids were received

“While there is evidence that certain bid amounts may have changed during the process, there is no record that officials in my Department were furnished with the names of the 8 bidders, the amounts which each bidder submitted in the first round or in the second round, nor the reasons behind any changes in bid amounts which may have occurred, so I am unable to comment further.”

Minister asked if his concerns about the quality of decision making at IBRC extended to the possible triple conflict of interest of a staff member there with respect to the accounts this person managed who may have also been parties to the Sitserv transaction 

“I am not aware of and there are no records which suggest that there were any concerns with the person referred to in the question or of any potential conflicts of interest that existed in his role in IBRC. Therefore, I am unable to comment further on this matter.”


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 15583/15

21st April 2015

18

16128/15

23rd April 2015

19 16123/15

22

“There are no records on file with the Department of Finance from the European Commission around the transaction involving the company referred to in the question.”

23rd April 2015

Minister asked if strained relationship between IBRC and Department had any bearing on decision to liquidate IBRC 

28th April 2015

21 16660/15

“I have been advised that the senior official from my Department who was seconded to IBRC (who commenced his role in October 2012) did not raise any concerns relating to the person referred to in the question. I am further advised that the senior official from my Department who was seconded to IBRC was not involved in any discussions for or on behalf of IBRC in relation to transactions relating to Boundary Capital or with Boundary Capital.”

Minister asked about the closed process of the disposal of Siteserv and EU competition and state aid rules 

20 16661/15

Minister asked if the person seconded to IBRC from the Department ever reported any concerns about a staff member working at IBRC, particularly in relation to transaction(s) involving Boundary Capital.

Minister asked if he took the clear advice of his officials to conduct an independent review of the Siteserv transaction and to share the findings of same 

28th April 2015

“The relationship with the management of IBRC did not drive these strategic objectives, nor the decision making process surrounding the formulation, design and structuring of the Promissory Note transaction and liquidation of IBRC.”

“In light of the level of assurances I received from the Chairman that this transaction had been properly considered by the IBRC Board, assurances which I accepted, an independent review into the transaction did not take place.”

Minister asked why voiced such strong support for the management of IBRC during debate on the liquidation of same when his Department clearly had major concerns for some time about the quality of the decisions they were taking 

“My statement about the Board, management and


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 166659/15

28th April 2015

23 16657/15 16658/15

28th April 2015

24 25 16656/15

26

staff of IBRC reflected the position at that time.” Minister asked to release findings of Central Bank investigation into Siteserv transaction “there is no record of my Department being furnished with a copy of this report undertaken by the Central Bank into the sale of the company referred to in the question and therefore I am not in a position to release the report” Minister asked why refused to state categorically in the first PQ asked on this matter in December if he himself was satisfied with the sale of Siteserv and if he viewed this is evasive; also asked why he has failed to state his own view of the transaction thus far 

28th April 2015

“I must rely on the fiduciary responsibility of the IBRC Board and the explicit assurances provided to me by the Chairman of the Board that this transaction was done in the best possible interests of the State. It is completely reasonable that I state that I was satisfied with the Board's assurances that the concerns raised had been dealt with in a manner that gave the Board no cause for concern.” Minister asked to elaborate on what precisely his Department officials described as poor management at IBRC and if these concerns centred on any one individual there 

Referred to page 7 of document 8 at DoF website http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foidocuments

“The aggregate of these concerns could fairly be described as a broader concern regarding effective corporate governance and effective communication with IBRC. It is well understood that the Department's engagement was primarily with IBRC's senior executives and Chairman. As a result, any concerns would have been raised with those individuals. However, it would be inappropriate to assume that concerns regarding governance and information sharing could be construed as concerns with individuals themselves.”


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 16655/15 16751/15

28th April 2015

27 28 16654/15

 

28th April 2015

29th April 2015

32

Minister asked to state reasons why documents released under FOI were so heavily redacted. “The reason supporting the vast majority of redactions in this instance was that the redacted information was not relevant to the request which had asked specifically for information relating to the sale of Siteserv. Other reasons for redaction as set out by the deciding officer, included that information contained in the records was obtained in confidence and that some records contained commercially sensitive information Minister asked to confirm that no major conflicts of interest exist amongst staff employed or seconded to his Department. 

29th April 2015

31 16999/15

Pointed to the review which has been announced Ignored the other elements of the question.

30 17000/15

Referred to page 7 of document 8 at DoF website http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foidocuments

29 17001/15

Minister asked to share the details of other large transactions his Department had concerns about including write-down values etc

Confirmed all staff in his Department must adhere to Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour. Minister asked why the Financial Services Regulator, the Irish Stock Exchange nor the Irish Takeover Panel did not initiate any enquiries into the sale of Siteserv by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation 

29th April 2015

All three bodies are independent in their function and there is no record of any correspondence between DoF and any of the bodies concerning Siteserv disposal. Minister asked if he is aware of any meetings between the main shareholders of Siteserv and Denis O’Brien 

Not aware of any such meetings which may have taken place.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 16998/15

29th April 2015

33 16996/15 16997/15

34 35

Minister asked if he is aware of any meetings between the senior management of Siteserv and Denis O’Brien; between senior management at IBRC and Denis O’Brien at any stage from 1/1/2011 – disposal of Siteserv. 

29th April 2015

“Neither I nor officials from my Department were made aware of instances where the person referred to in the question met with Siteserv management between 1 January 2011 up to the time of the eventual sale of the company.”

Minister asked if he was aware whether share sales in Siteserv were bought by senior employees at Davy/KPMG in advance of the sale; Asked for all correspondence held by his Department concerning share sales at Siteserv 

“During the Department of Finance review into the sale of Siteserv, it was not brought to the attention of me or officials in my Department that there may have been questionable share trading activity preceeding the sale of Siteserv or that the Irish Stock Exchange had investigated this matter. Neither I nor officials in my Department monitor the share dealing activity in publicly traded companies, including Siteserv.”

“Neither I nor officials in my Department hold a record of the list of shareholders who benefitted from the sale of Siteserv in 2012 other than the partial summary of the top 10 shareholders of Siteserv as at December 9, 2011, already released under Freedom of Information.”


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 16995/15

29th April 2015

36

Minister asked to confirm that the primary Davy CF advisor to the Siteserv sale now heads the Shareholder Management Unit of the Department of Finance and if this represents a conflict of interest 

I can confirm that the person referred to in the question who was primary advisor at Davy Corporate Finance to Siteserv during its sales process in 2012 is now Head of the Shareholding Management Unit in my Department. He began his current employment on 6th November 2013.

Prior to taking up his current employment, the person referred to in the question declared a conflict of interest existed on the Siteserv transaction which he advised on while in his previous employment. Given this conflict of interest, and in keeping with Department of Finance and NTMA policy, the person referred to in the question has not been involved in any way with any issues on the Siteserv transaction, this includes approving parliamentary questions, reviewing freedom of information requests and all internal discussions on this matter.

I would like to clarify that Davy Corporate Finance, in conjunction with KPMG Corporate Finance, were advising Siteserv exclusively. Davy Corporate Finance were not advising the person whose details were also referred to in the question as a bidder for Siteserv. Officials in my Department received correspondence from Davy confirming the same.

17176/15

30th April 2015

37 17175/15

38

Given what I have already outlined, I do not believe there exists a conflict of interest on these matters. Minister asked if the process surrounding the Siteserv bid was unusual in that the winning bid matched the bid requirements precisely without any apparent due diligence 

30th April 2015

No evidence brought to Department attention that the winning bid was presented as matching precisely the requirements of the seller Minister asked to disclose and release all dialogue between DoF and European Commission concerning appointment of Special Liquidator at IBRC 

“There was no specific dialogue between my Department and the European Commission in relation to the appointment of the Special Liquidator to IBRC”


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 17174/15

30th April 2015

39 17173/15

30th April 2015

40 17675/15

6th May 2015

42 17564/15

Minister asked if the strained relationship between the DoF and IBRC was a factor in the early liquidation of same

7th May 2015

“The relationship with the management of IBRC was not a contributory factor, nor the decision making process surrounding the formulation, design and structuring of the Promissory Note transaction and liquidation of IBRC.” Minister asked why he stated that Siteserv was discussed at an August 2012 meeting with Chair and CEO when CEO disputes this.  

44

Was a professional working relationship at all times. Health debate expected. Advised to seek documentation through FOI.

43 20468/15

Was a professional working relationship at all times. Health debate expected. Advised to seek documentation through FOI

Minister asked if IBRC was recovering 100% of the loans of Denis O’Brien; the outstanding loan balances   

7th May 2015

“Neither I nor officials from my Department are

aware of any specific concerns being raised with the European Commission regarding the quality of some of the managerial decisions taken at IBRC.” Minister asked to describe the quality of the relationship between DoF and IBRC prior to Sp. Liquidation; if the relationship had any bearing on the decision to liquidate.   

41 17571/15

Minister asked to disclose and release all dialogue between DoF and European Commission concerning the quality of decision making at IBRC

26th May 2015

Provided the records which list Siteserv as a topic for discussion at said meeting Never was and never would be Minster’s intention to mislead Dail Eireann

To ask the Minister if the review into IBRC transactions will cover the sale of Blue Ocean Associates and Topaz 

Restated the terms of the present investigation


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 20262/15

26th May 2015

45 20259/15 20260/15 20261/15

26th May 2015

46 47 48 20258/15

49

To ask the Minister if any borrowers of IBRC were offered or given discounts as an incentive to re-finance their loans elsewhere “The Special Liquidators have confirmed to me that no borrowers were offered discounts on their loans as an incentive to refinance their loans elsewhere.” To ask the Minister if he is aware of any verbal agreement between Denis O’Brien and the CEO of IBRC regarding his loan payments; aware of any such agreement which was never put to the Credit Committee of IBRC; if Denis O’Brien ever wrote to the present Special Liquidator seeking changes in his loans

26th May 2015

“I am advised by the Special Liquidators that they are not in a position to comment on individual borrowers. The requested information is confidential and it would not be appropriate for the Special Liquidators to release such information.”

To ask the Minister the amount of money spent by IBRC litigating a case 

“Due to commercial confidentiality and sensitivities, and also solicitor/client confidentiality, the Special Liquidators do not propose to provide details of monies spent in litigating the specified case. Furthermore, the Special Liquidators do not comment on individual cases.”


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 288 (20258/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e am o u n t o f m o n ey sp en t , t o d at e, b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n in lit ig at in g a case (d et ails su p p lied ); an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY. Due to commercial confidentiality and sensitivities, and also solicitor/client confidentiality, the Special Liquidators do not propose to provide details of monies spent in litigating the specified case. Furthermore, the Special Liquidators do not comment on individual cases.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NOS: 289,290,291 (20259/15, 20260/15, 20261/15) Dテ!L QUESTIONS ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/05/2015

* To ask the Minister for Finance if he is aware of the existence of a verbal agreement between a debtor (details supplied) and the Chief Executive Officer of the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, which stipulated terms and conditions of loan repayments due to the Corporation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 26 May, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if he is aware of an agreement put in place between a debtor and the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (details supplied), regarding the flexible repayment of that debtors loans, which was never escalated to the Credit Committee of Corporation, as legally required; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 26 May, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if he is aware that a debtor to the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (details supplied) had written to the present Special Liquidator of the Corporation, seeking changes in any of the terms and conditions of that debtor's loans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 26 May, 2015.

REPLY.

I am advised by the Special Liquidators that they are not in a position to comment on individual borrowers. The requested information is confidential and it would not be appropriate for the Special Liquidators to release such information.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 292 (20262/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e is aw ar e t h at t h e Sp ecial Liq u id at o r s o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n h ave o f f er ed o r g iven d isco u n t s t o d eb t o r s, as an in cen t ive t o r e f in an ce t h eir lo an s elsew h er e, b ef o r e t h e sch ed u led sale o f said lo an s, as p ar t o f t h e liq u id at io n p r o cess; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

The Special Liquidators have confirmed to me that no borrowers were offered discounts on their loans as an incentive to refinance their loans elsewhere.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 300 (20468/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if t h e r ev iew in t o t r an sact io n s at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , t o b e u n d er t aken b y KPMG, w ill in clu d e a r ev iew o f b o t h t h e Blu e Ocean Asso ciat es sale t o a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ), w h ich r esu lt ed in a w r it e d o w n o f 竄ャ64 m illio n , an d t h e sale o f To p az t o a co n so r t iu m led b y t h e sam e p er so n , w h ich also in vo lved a sig n if ican t w r it e-d o w n t o t h e St at e. REPLY.

As the Deputy is aware, I have issued directions to the Special Liquidators to perform a review and produce a report having considered all transactions, activities and management decisions, other than those relating solely to the acquisition of assets by the National Asset Management Agency which either: 1. Resulted in a capital loss to IBRC of at least 竄ャ10 million; 2. Are specifically identified as giving rise to potential public concern in respect of the ultimate returns to the taxpayer. The period under review is between the nationalisation of the then Anglo Irish Bank on 21 January 2009 and the Special Liquidation of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Limited on 7 February 2013.I am advised by the Special Liquidators that they are not yet in a position to comment on individual transactions that are or are not under review.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 27 (17564/15) DÁIL QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r ORAL ANSWER o n 07/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce f u r t h er t o Par liam en t ar y Qu est io n No . 80 o f 26 Mar ch 2015, t h e r easo n , in r elat io n t o h is Dep ar t m en t 's en q u ir ies in t o t h e sale o f Sit eser v b y Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , h e st at ed t h at a f u r t h er m eet in g b et w een t h e f o r m er Secr et ar y Gen er al o f t h e Dep ar t m en t o f Fin an ce, an d t h e t h en Ch ief Execu t iv e Of f icer o f t h e co r p o r at io n t o o k p lace in Au g u st 2012, at w h ich t h is m at t er w as f u r t h er d iscu ssed , w h en it h as e m er g ed in t o t h e p u b lic d o m ain b y t h e Ch ief Execu t ive Of f icer in q u est io n , t h at t h e m at t er w as n o t d iscu ssed at t h at m eet in g (d et ails su p p lied ); if h e d isp u t es t h e acco u n t p r o vid ed b y t h e f o r m er Ch ief Execu t ive Of f icer ; if n o t , if it w as h is in t en t io n t o m islead Dáil Éir ean n in t h is m at t er ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

A record of the briefing note ahead of the former Secretary General of the Department of Finance meeting with the then CEO of IBRC in August 2012 shows that Siteserv was one of a number of topics which was contained in the briefing note. A further record of an email which outlines outputs from this meeting also exists. The main output relating to this issue was the agreement to the secondment of a senior Department of Finance official to IBRC. (These records have been released under FOI and are available on the Department of Finance website at http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/pressreleases/ibrc-foi-documents.) This led to a senior Department of Finance official being announced as the Bank's new Head of Market Solutions on secondment from the Department of Finance, commencing the role on 2 October 2012. Given the banking experience of this person it was decided that he would be seconded to IBRC to explore opportunities for deleveraging with a view to maximising the recovery for the taxpayer. This had the additional benefit of providing greater oversight while supporting the management team.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. The responsibilities of the person referred to in the question included: - Membership of the Bank's Group Executive Committee (GEXCO); - Membership of the Transaction Review Committee; - Contribute to the strategic leadership of the Bank; - Analyse existing investments within the portfolio, critically assess business plans, operations, management, processes, risks, and opportunities; - Structure/restructure loans/investments from an optimal financial perspective, negotiate the structure and preferred terms; - Identifying and developing deal opportunities with external investors and financiers that meet the various strategic and financial objectives of the Bank in wind down; - Build and maintain dialogue with potential investors and counterparties to establish market opportunities and viable transaction options that assist the Bank meeting its wind down objectives; - Engagement will be across private equity funds, credit opportunity funds, real estate funds and sovereign wealth funds as well as banks and other providers of credit in the European markets; - Work with asset recovery teams; - Appoint brokers/advisors in accordance with the Bank's procurement and compliance policy; - Team management, and; - Lead the execution of transactions and engage with counter parties while involving internal group functional groups as well as external service providers. As the Deputy is aware, the former Secretary General of the Department of Finance who attended this meeting no longer works for the Department of Finance. However, given the facts outlined above, it should be very clear to the Deputy that it was not, nor never would be, my intention to mislead Dåil Éireann.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 31(17571/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r ORAL ANSWER o n 07/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce in view o f t h e in f o r m at io n w h ich h as em er g ed in t o t h e p u b lic d o m ain r ecen t ly w h ich d em o n st r at es a sev er ely st r ain ed r elat io n sh ip b et w een h is Dep ar t m en t an d t h e sen io r m an ag em en t at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n in ad v an ce o f it s sp ecial liq u id at io n , if h e w ill st at e t h at su ch d if f icu lt ies w er e n o t a co n t r ib u t o r y f act o r in t h e ear ly w in d in g u p o f t h e co r p o r at io n in Feb r u ar y 2013; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

There was a professional working relationship between my Department and senior management of IBRC at all times. Given the issues which the bank was dealing with at the time, this may not have always led to agreement on certain matters between my Department and senior management of IBRC, nor should this be expected. I would expect healthy debate on such matters between the parties involved and expect they would have asked difficult questions of each other during their interactions given the importance of the decisions being made. We should expect professionals to challenge, debate and sometimes disagree with each other and not shy away from having difficult discussions in pursuing and justifying what they believe to be the best course of action in whatever issue they are addressing. The decision to liquidate IBRC and exchange the Promissory Notes was taken with the expressed purpose of protecting the taxpayer, to end the exposure of the State and the Central Bank to IBRC, to enable the state to re-establish normalised access to the international debt markets, to resolve the debt of IBRC to the Central Bank, to restore confidence in the banking sector more generally and to provide for the orderly wind down of IBRC which was being supported, at a heavy cost to the State, by the Promissory Notes. The relationship with the management of IBRC was not a contributory factor, nor the decision making process surrounding the formulation, design and structuring of the Promissory Note transaction and liquidation of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 156 (17657/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 06/05/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill co n f ir m t h at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , u p t o t h e t im e o f it s liq u id at io n , w as r eco v er in g 100% o f lo an s r ep aid b y a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ); w h et h er t h is p er so n h ad an y o u t st an d in g lo an b alan ces af t er t h e co r p o r at io n w en t in t o liq u id at io n ; if t h e sp ecial liq u id at o r r eceiv ed a 100% r ep ay m en t o f t h ese lo an s, o f if t h e sp ecial liq u id at o r allo w ed t h is p er so n t o p u r ch ase t h e lo an s b ack, at a d isco u n t ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Neither I nor the Special Liquidators of IBRC are in a position to comment on individual borrowers. The requested information is confidential and it would not be appropriate for the Special Liquidators to release such information.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 85 (17173/15) Dà IL QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 30/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill d escr ib e t h e q u alit y o f t h e w o r kin g r elat io n sh ip b et w een h is Dep ar t m en t an d t h e sen io r m an ag em en t an d st af f at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , in t h e m o n t h s lead in g u p t o t h e ap p o in t m en t o f a sp ecial liq u id at o r t o sam e; if h e w ill r elease all co r r esp o n d en ce an d d o cu m en t at io n in t h e p er io d f r o m t h e sale o f Sit eser v p lc u n t il t h e ap p o in t m en t o f t h e sp ecial liq u id at o r w h ich in d icat e h is Dep ar t m en t ’s o p in io n o r co n cer n r eg ar d in g t h e q u alit y o f d ecisio n m akin g b y sen io r m an ag em en t ; if h e w ill p r o vid e all d o cu m en t at io n an d co r r esp o n d en ce co n cer n in g t h e ev en t u al ap p o in t m en t o f a sp ecial liq u id at o r ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

There was a professional working relationship between my Department and senior management of IBRC at all times. Given the issues which the bank was dealing with at the time, this may not have always led to agreement on certain matters between my Department and senior management of IBRC, nor should this be expected. I would expect healthy debate on such matters between the parties involved and expect they would have asked difficult questions of each other during their interactions given the importance of the decisions being made. We should expect professionals to challenge, debate and sometimes disagree with each other and not shy away from having difficult discussions in pursuing and justifying what they believe to be the best course of action in whatever issue they are addressing. In relation to your request for documentation and correspondence, I would suggest that the Deputy seek the release of these documents under a Freedom of Information request.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 86 (17174/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 30/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e d ialo g u e h is Dep ar t m en t h ad w it h t h e Eu r o p ean Co m m issio n r eg ar d in g it s co n cer n s as t o t h e q u alit y o f so m e o f t h e m an ag er ial d ecisio n s at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill r elease all d o cu m en t at io n an d co r r esp o n d en ce co n cer n in g sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Neither I nor officials from my Department are aware of any specific concerns being raised with the European Commission regarding the quality of some of the managerial decisions taken at IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 87 (17175/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 30/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e d ialo g u e h is Dep ar t m en t h ad w it h t h e Eu r o p ean Co m m issio n r eg ar d in g t h e ap p o in t m en t o f a sp ecial liq u id at o r t o t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill r elease all d o cu m en t at io n an d co r r esp o n d en ce co n cer n in g sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

There was no specific dialogue between my Department and the European Commission in relation to the appointment of the Special Liquidator to IBRC given the scale and sensitivity of that decision. It should be noted however that the European Commission, as part of the Troika, were involved in discussions regarding the restructuring of the Promissory Notes generally in the period leading up to the agreement with the European Central Bank in February 2013.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 88 (17176/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 30/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e o r an y o f h is o f f icials exp r essed an y co n cer n s r eg ar d in g t h e f act t h at t h e w in n in g b id p r esen t ed d u r in g t h e sale p r o cess o f Sit eser v p lc w as ap p ar en t ly p r esen t ed as m at ch in g t h e p r ecise r eq u ir em en t s o f t h e seller , in t h is case w it h o u t an y p r io r en g ag em en t b y said b id d er w it h t h e sale p r o cess; h is view s t h at su ch a co n cise b id is u n u su al, an d r aises so m e co n cer n s r eg ar d in g t h e ext en t o f in f o r m at io n w h ich co u ld p o t en t ially h ave b een m ad e availab le d u r in g t h e sale p r o cess; if h e w ill p u b lish all co n cer n s exp r essed b y Dep ar t m en t o f f icials r eg ar d in g t h e sale p r o cess, w it h p ar t icu lar r ef er en ce t o t h e f o r eg o in g elem en t o f t h e sale; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Upon the receipt of critical representations following the transaction, Department of Finance officials inquired about the transaction with IBRC management as part of their regular engagement. Following initial discussions, they agreed with IBRC's Chairman and CEO (on 31 May 2012) that they would review the available information on the transaction involving Siteserv in greater detail to better understand the decisions taken and the impact these decisions had on the process and the final recovery for the bank. This review by Department of Finance officials took place on 11 June 2012. Through this review, Department of Finance officials became concerned with certain aspects of the transaction, which were set out in the memo's and briefing notes that have been released under recent Freedom of Information requests and which are available on the Department of Finance website at http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foi-documents. These documents include all concerns which my Department expressed regarding the sale process.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. From these records, there is no evidence that it was brought to the attention of my officials that the winning bid to purchase Siteserv was apparently presented as matching the precise requirements of the seller.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 59 (16995/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill co n f ir m t h at t h e p r im ar y ad viso r at Davy Co r p o r at e Fin an ce (d et ails su p p lied ) w it h r esp o n sib ilit y f o r t h e 2012 Sit eser v sale, w h o w as also r esp o n sib le f o r m an ag in g t h e co r p o r at e f in an ce r elat io n sh i p o f an in t er est ed p ar t y at t h at t im e (d et ails su p p lied ), w as su b seq u en t ly h ir ed b y h is Dep ar t m en t t o o ver see t h e Sh ar eh o ld er Man ag em en t Un it , w h ich h ad r esp o n sib ilit y f o r Dep ar t m en t al en q u ir ies in t o t h e Sit eser v t r an sact io n t h r o u g h o u t t h e 2012 / 2013 p er i o d ; t h e d at es at w h ich t h is p er so n b eg an em p lo y m en t in said r o le; if h e co n sid er s t h er e t o b e a m ajo r co n f lict o f in t er est ap p ar en t in r esp ect o f sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I can confirm that the person referred to in the question who was primary advisor at Davy Corporate Finance to Siteserv during its sales process in 2012 is now Head of the Shareholding Management Unit in my Department. This person was recruited through competition by the National Treasury Management Agency. He is employed by the National Treasury Management Agency and is on secondment to the Department of Finance. He began his current employment on 6th November 2013. Prior to taking up his current employment, the person referred to in the question declared a conflict of interest existed on the Siteserv transaction which he advised on while in his previous employment. Given this conflict of interest, and in keeping with Department of Finance and NTMA policy, the person referred to in the question has not been involved in any way with any issues on the Siteserv transaction, this includes approving parliamentary questions, reviewing freedom of information requests and all internal discussions on this matter.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. I would like to clarify that Davy Corporate Finance, in conjunction with KPMG Corporate Finance, were advising Siteserv exclusively. Davy Corporate Finance were not advising the person whose details were also referred to in the question as a bidder for Siteserv. Officials in my Department received correspondence from Davy confirming the same. Given what I have already outlined, I do not believe there exists a conflict of interest on these matters.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NOS: 60,61(16996/15, 16997/15) Dテ!L QUESTIONS ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015

* To ask the Minister for Finance if, as part of his Departmental enquiries into the sale of Siteserv by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation in 2012, he was aware that shares in Siteserv were bought by senior employees at the entity engaged by Siteserv to facilitate its own sale in the three month period immediately preceding the actual sale to Millington Ltd; if he was aware that these share acquisitions may have arisen as a result of privileged information relating to the sale being shared in a dishonest fashion; if he is aware that the Irish Stock Exchange has investigated this matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Wednesday, 29 April, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if he will release all documentation and correspondence between his Department, other State agencies, the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation and all other parties concerning the acquisition of shares in Siteserv Ltd in the period 1 June 2011 to date in 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Wednesday, 29 April, 2015.

REPLY.

The Deputy raises serious concerns regarding potential insider dealing in her question. If the Deputy has any information regarding insider dealing in Siteserv shares, I would suggest that she contact the Irish Stock Exchange in relation to same. The Irish Stock Exchange investigates suspected insider dealing on the Enterprise Stock Market, being the market on which Siteserv shares traded, and reports any such findings to the Office of Director of Corporate Enforcement. The Department of Finance does not have a role in this process. During the Department of Finance review into the sale of Siteserv, it was not brought to the attention of me or officials in my Department that there may have been questionable share trading activity preceeding the sale of Siteserv or that the Irish Stock Exchange had investigated this matter. Neither I nor officials in my Department monitor the share dealing activity in publicly traded companies, including Siteserv.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. Neither I nor officials in my Department hold a record of the list of shareholders who benefitted from the sale of Siteserv in 2012 other than the partial summary of the top 10 shareholders of Siteserv as at December 9, 2011, already released under Freedom of Information. However, I understand the Special Liquidator is coordinating access to the share register, which is available to view at the offices of Computershare, who provded share registration services to Siteserv. I would suggest that the Deputy contact the Special Liquidator directly if she would like to access this information.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 62 (16998/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e is aw ar e o f in st an ces w h er e a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ) m et w it h Sit eser v co m p an y m an ag em en t at an y st ag e f r o m 1 Jan u ar y 2011 t o t h e d at e o f t h e ev en t u al sale o f Sit eser v b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , o r h ad d ir ect en g ag em en t s; if h e is aw ar e o f in st an ces w h er e t h is p er so n m et w it h m an ag em en t o r st af f at t h e co r p o r at io n , o r h ad d ir ect en g ag em en t s, d u r in g t h e sam e p er io d ; if so , if h e w ill sh ar e t h e ext en t o f h is kn o w led g e co n cer n in g t h e su b ject o f t h o se m eet in g s an d en g ag em en t s, w h o p ar t icip at ed in t h em an d t h e d at es t h ey o ccu r r ed o n ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Neither I nor officials from my Department were made aware of instances where the person referred to in the question met with Siteserv management between 1 January 2011 up to the time of the eventual sale of the company.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 63 (16999/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h is at t en t io n h as b e en d r aw n t o in st an ces w h er e t h e m ain sh ar eh o ld er s o f Sit eser v m et w it h a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ), o r h ad d ir ect en g ag em en t s w it h t h e p er so n , at an y st ag e f r o m 1 Jan u ar y 2011 t o t h e d at e o f t h e ev en t u al sale o f Sit eser v b y Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

My attention or that of my officials was not brought to instances in which these meetings may have taken place.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 64 (17000/15) Dà IL QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill acco u n t f o r t h e r easo n n eit h er t h e Fin an cial Ser v ices Reg u lat o r , t h e Ir ish St o ck Exch an g e n o r t h e Ir ish Takeo v er Pan el d id n o t in it iat e an y en q u ir ies in t o t h e sale o f Sit eser v b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill sh ar e t h e ext en t o f h is Dep ar t m en t ’s co r r esp o n d en ce w it h each o f t h ese en t it ies in r elat io n t o sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em e n t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Neither I nor my officials from my Department were involved in the transaction invloving the company referred to in the question. The Financial Services Regulator, the Irish Stock Exchange and the Irish Takeover Panel are independent in their function. There is no record of correspondence between my Department and these bodies in relation to the sale of Siteserv.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 65 (17001/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 29/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e is sat isf ied t h at all st af f em p lo y ed in h is Dep ar t m en t d o n o t h ave f in an cial in t er est s w h ich m ay co n f lict w it h t h eir p u b lic ser v ice d u t ies; t h e r eq u ir em en t s w h ich ar e p laced u p o n st af f , in o r d er t o en su r e im p ar t ialit y; if it is p er m issib le f o r st af f w h o ar e em p lo y ed at h is Dep ar t m en t t o co m p ly w it h t h ese r eg u lat io n s b y t r an sf er r in g an y p o t en t ial co m p r o m isin g in t er est s t o t h eir sp o u ses o r civil p ar t n er s; if su ch t r an sf er s ar e r eq u ir ed t o b e d isclo sed ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As in the case for all civil servants; all staff in my Department must adhere to the Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour. The code makes it clear that "Civil servants are not allowed to: use their official positions to benefit themselves or others with whom they have personal, family, business or other ties". It goes on to state that "Civil servants may not at any time engage in, or be connected with, any outside business or activity which would in any way conflict with the interests of their Departments/Offices, or be inconsistent with their official positions, or tend to impair their ability to carry out their duties as civil servants" In addition, staff at designated levels are required to comply with the provisions of the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 and 2001, which requires the return of a completed Statement of Interests form on an annual basis. In my Department all staff at Administrative Officer, Higher Executive Officer level or above have been designated and earlier this year, with the exception of staff who are absent on maternity leave or other long term leave, all designated staff have completed a return for 2014. Staff on secondment to my Department from the NTMA at an equivalent level are also required to complete the same Statement of Interests form on an annual basis and return it to the Secretary General in my Department. These forms require the disclosure of all interests which could materially influence a staff member in or in relation to the performance of their official functions.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. A member of staff cannot avoid these disclosure requirements by transferring interests to a spouse or civil partner, as the staff member is required to disclose any such interest "held by you and any interests held, to your actual knowledge, by your spouse or civil partner, a child of yours, or a child of your spouse."


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 122 (16654/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e r easo n d o cu m en t s r eleased t o t h is Dep u t y u n d er t h e Fr eed o m o f In f o r m at io n Act s, co n cer n in g t h e sale o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ) w er e so h eavily r ed act ed ; if h e w ill p r o vid e a p ag e b y p ag e ju st if icat io n f o r each r ed act io n ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I believe the Deputy is referring to documents released under a Freedom of Information Act request made by another member of the public for correspondence, reports and memos regarding the company referred to in the question, which were made available to the Deputy in fulfilment of my commitment to do so in response to Parliamentary Question number 12628/15. There were various reasons that the documents released under that particular FOI request were redacted. The reason supporting the vast majority of redactions in this instance was that the redacted information was not relevant to the request which had asked specifically for information relating to the sale of Siteserv. Other reasons for redaction as set out by the deciding officer, included that information contained in the records was obtained in confidence and that some records contained commercially sensitive information. I believe my officials have provided you with a copy of this original FOI request, setting out the original question asked and the schedule to the documents released which includes the basis for their refusal by the deciding officer in line with the FOI Act 2014. As the Deputy is aware these documents, along with others, have since been released under a subsequent FOI request which posed a broader question. This FOI request asked for documents relating to meetings held with IBRC and was not specific to the company referred to in the question. As a result the documents released under this request are less redacted as more material is relevant to the question. The documents released under this request, including the schedule of documents and the reason for any refusal or redaction, are available on the Department of Finance website through the following link: http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foi-documents.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NOS: 123 (16655/15),133 (16751/15) Dテ!L QUESTIONS ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Mich ael McGr at h f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015

* To ask the Minister for Finance if he will provide a list of the number of large transactions undertaken by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation which his Department had concerns over, as described in documents released to this Deputy under the Freedom of Information Act, concerning the sale of a company (details supplied) by the corporation, and which he was also described as being very concerned about; if he will specifically and methodically indicate the amounts concerned in each case, that is, the impact upon the capital holdings of the corporation, the cost to the State, the total write-downs on original value, and so on; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 28 April, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if he will provide details of each transaction engaged in by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation since the nationalisation of the former Anglo Irish Bank, and prior to the appointment of a Special Liquidator for the corporation, that his Department officials expressed some concern about; if he will provide this information in aggregate or summary form; the action that was taken by his Department in each case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Michael McGrath T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 28 April, 2015.

REPLY.

In terms of transactions involving IBRC in which my Department had concerns over, I would like to draw the Deputy's attention towards the Department of Finance website where documents released under a recent FOI have been published. On page 7 of the document titled '8. Briefing ahead of 25 July meeting', there is a table containing six matters over which the Department of Finance officials raised concerns. http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foi-documents In response to publicly raised concerns, as announced last Thursday, I am directing the Special Liquidators of IBRC to review and report on all transactions, activities and management decisions which occurred between the date of nationalisation and the date that IBRC entered into liquidation that resulted in a capital loss to IBRC of at least 竄ャ10 million. I have also directed the Special Liquidators to include in their review and report any


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. transactions which would likely give rise to public concerns in respect of the ultimate returns to the taxpayer. The review and report will evaluate whether there is any evidence of material deficiencies in the performance of their functions by those acting on behalf of IBRC, including the board, directors, management and agents of IBRC and whether it can be concluded that any of the transactions were not commercially sound. The special liquidators will also be obliged to ensure that any conflicts of interest which may arise are properly managed. Directing that a review be conducted by the Special Liquidators has the advantage of enabling work on the review to commence very quickly. The review will be completed by the 31st of August and I intend to make this report available to relevant committees of the Oireachtas as requested.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 124 (16656/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill elab o r at e sp ecif ically u p o n w h at h is Dep ar t m en t o f f icials d escr ib ed as p o o r m an ag em en t , w h ich w as d isp layed in a n u m b er o f lar g e t r an sact io n s, as d escr ib ed in d o cu m en t s r eleased t o t h is Dep u t y u n d er t h e Fr eed o m o f In f o r m at io n Act , co n cer n in g t h e sale o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ) b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h is Dep ar t m en t h ad an y co n cer n s r eg ar d in g sp ecif ic p er so n s w o r kin g in t h e co r p o r at io n , w it h r eg ar d t o t h ese p o o r d ecisio n s; if so , if h e w ill h e st at e w h o m ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I would like to draw the Deputy's attention towards the Department of Finance website where documents released under a recent FOI have been published at http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/ibrc-foi-documents. On page 7 of the document titled '8. Briefing ahead of 25 July meeting', there is a table containing six matters of concern at that time. As reflected in the documents released under FOI, there were concerns regarding a number of transactions and decisions at the time. The aggregate of these concerns could fairly be described as a broader concern regarding effective corporate governance and effective communication with IBRC. It is well understood that the Department's engagement was primarily with IBRC's senior executives and Chairman. As a result, any concerns would have been raised with those individuals. However, it would be inappropriate to assume that concerns regarding governance and information sharing could be construed as concerns with individuals themselves.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NOS: 125 (16657/15),126 (16658/15) Dテ!L QUESTIONS ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015

* To ask the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 220 of 16 December 2014, the reason he refused to answer the specific question, which asked if he was satisfied that the sale of a company (details supplied) by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, was done so in the best possible interests of the State, instead indicating that he was informed that the board of the corporation considered it so; his views that failing to supply his position on this matter may lead to a reasonable assumption, based on the reply to the Parliamentary Question that his Department had no concerns whatsoever regarding the matter; if he will concede that this is a dissimulative approach to take, considering information which later came to light proved otherwise; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 28 April, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if he will categorically state if the sale of a company (details supplied) by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation was in fact conducted for the maximum return of the State; the reason he has failed to state his position thus far on this matter, even though it has come to light that his Department believed that the sale decision has raised a number of areas where we believe that decisions taken by the corporation resulted in a less optimum return for the bank, as is clearly written in documents marked seen by the Minister; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 28 April, 2015.

REPLY.

The Chairman of IBRC provided me with strong assurances that the transaction had been thoroughly assessed by the IBRC Board and that they were satisfied that the transaction had been managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. The IBRC Board had a fiduciary responsibility to the bank's stakeholders and in light of this legal responsibility the Chairman and the Board would have considered and provided such assurances following serious and careful consideration. As neither I nor my officials were involved in the execution of this transaction, I must rely on the fiduciary responsibility of the IBRC Board and the explicit assurances provided to me by the Chairman of the Board that this transaction was done in the best possible interests of the State.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. It is completely reasonable that I state that I was satisfied with the Board's assurances that the concerns raised had been dealt with in a manner that gave the Board no cause for concern.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 127 (16659/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill r elease t h e f in d in g s o f t h e r eview u n d er t aken b y o f f icials at t h e Cen t r al Ban k o f Ir elan d in t o t h e sale o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ) b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill in d icat e t h e m ain r eco m m en d at io n s ar isin g f r o m sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Following a search of relevant files, there is no record of my Department being furnished with a copy of this report undertaken by the Central Bank into the sale of the company referred to in the question and therefore I am not in a position to release the report.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 128 (16660/15) DÁIL QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e r easo n h e st at ed in Dáil Éir ean n o n 6 Feb r u ar y 2013 d u r in g h is o p en in g r em ar ks at t h e Seco n d St ag e o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n Act 2013, t h at h e w ish ed t o em p h asise t h at t h e r easo n t h ese st ep s ar e b ein g t aken is en t ir ely d ist in ct f r o m t h e p er f o r m an ce o r d ir ect io n o f t h e b o ar d o r m an ag em en t o f t h e co r p o r at io n , an d t h at h e w ish ed t o ackn o w led g e, w it h m u ch ap p r eciat io n , t h e sig n if ican t ef f o r t s t h e d ir ect o r s an d st af f o f t h e co r p o r at io n h ave m ad e t o t h e st ab ilisat io n o f , an d m ain t en an ce o f v alu e in , t h e co r p o r at io n ; if at t h at t im e, as h as b een r evealed in d o cu m en t s d at ed Ju ly 2012 an d r eleased t o t h is Dep u t y u n d er Fr eed o m o f In f o r m at io n Act , h e w as v er y co n cer n ed w it h h o w a lar g e n u m b er o f t r an sact io n s h ave b een h an d led o ver t h e p ast n u m b er o f m o n t h s, an d t h at t h is h as led t h e Dep ar t m en t t o q u est io n t h e ef f ect iv en ess o f t h e Ch ief Execu t ive Of f icer an d t h e cu r r en t m an ag em en t t eam ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

The decision to liquidate IBRC and exchange the Promissory Notes was taken with the expressed purpose of protecting the taxpayer, to end the exposure of the State and the Central Bank to IBRC, to enable the state to re-establish normalised access to the international debt markets, to resolve the debt of IBRC to the Central Bank, to restore confidence in the banking sector more generally and to provide for the orderly wind down of IBRC which was being supported, at a heavy cost to the State, by the Promissory Notes. The relationship with the management of IBRC did not drive these strategic objectives, nor the decision making process surrounding the formulation, design and structuring of the Promissory Note transaction and liquidation of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. My statement about the Board, management and staff of IBRC reflected the position at that time.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 129 (16661/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 28/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e t o o k t h e ad vice o f h is o f f icials w h o r eco m m en d ed t h at t h e Ch air m an o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n b e asked t o co m m issio n a f u ll in d ep en d en t r eview in r elat io n t o a co m p an y's (d et ails su p p lied ) t r an sact io n , as w r it t en in d o cu m en t s r eleased t o t h is Dep u t y u n d er t h e Fr eed o m o f In f o r m at io n Act ; if so , t h e p r o ced u r e t h at w as f o llo w ed ; t h e f in d in g s o f t h at r ev iew ; t h e m easu r es t h at w er e t aken o n f o o t o f t h e r eview b ein g co n d u ct ed ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

On 25 July 2012, I along with officials from my Department, met with IBRC's Chairman and CEO to discuss a number of concerns raised by Department of Finance officials, which included concerns regarding this transaction which were raised to me following engagement with IBRC management. During this meeting, I sought assurances around the concerns regarding the transaction. The Chairman provided me with strong assurances that the transaction, including those aspects of the transaction with which Department officials had concerns, had been thoroughly assessed by the IBRC Board and that the Board of IBRC were satisfied that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. It should be noted that the IBRC Board had a fiduciary responsibility to the bank's stakeholders and so, in light of this legal responsibility, the Chairman and the Board would have considered and provided such assurances following serious and careful consideration. It is important to note that this transaction had completed at that stage and there was no legal possibility of reversing the transaction. In light of the level of assurances I received from the Chairman that this transaction had been properly considered by the IBRC Board, assurances which I accepted, an independent review into the transaction did not take place. However, as announced last Thursday, due to the recent public concerns and questions raised regarding this transaction, I am directing the Special Liquidators of IBRC to review and report on all transactions, activities and management decisions which occurred between the date of nationalisation and the date that IBRC entered into liquidation that resulted in a


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. capital loss to IBRC of at least â‚Ź10 million. I have also directed the Special Liquidators to include in their review and report any transactions which give rise or would likely give rise to public concerns in respect of the ultimate returns to the taxpayer. The Special Liquidators are also obliged to ensure that any conflicts of interest which may arise in relation to this review are properly managed. The review and report will evaluate whether there is any evidence of material deficiencies in the performance of their functions by those acting on behalf of IBRC, including the board, directors, management and agents of IBRC and whether it can be concluded that any of the transactions were not commercially sound. Directing that a review be conducted by the Special liquidators has the advantage of enabling work on the review to commence very quickly. The review will be completed by the 31st of August and I intend to make this report available to relevant committees of the Oireachtas as requested.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 67 (16123/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 23/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e p o in t at w h ich t h e d ecisio n w as m ad e t o st ar t d r af t in g o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n Act o f 2013; if it is t h e case t h at t h e st r ain ed r elat io n sh ip w h ich exist ed b et w een t h e m an ag em en t o f t h e co r p o r at io n an d h is Dep ar t m en t , r ef er r ed t o in co r r esp o n d en ce f r o m t h e t im e w h ich h as co m e t o lig h t ver y r ecen t ly, h ad a b ear in g o n t h e Go ver n m en t 's d ecisio n t o d r af t said leg islat io n an d ap p o in t a sp ecial liq u id at o r ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

The ultimate decision to eliminate the Promissory Notes and liquidate IBRC was driven by careful consideration of the totality of costs and benefits to Ireland and the taxpayer of such action. The decision to liquidate IBRC and exchange the Promissory Notes was taken with the expressed purpose of protecting the taxpayer, to end the exposure of the State and the Central Bank to IBRC, to enable the state to re-establish normalised access to the international debt markets, to resolve the debt of IBRC to the Central Bank, to restore confidence in the banking sector more generally and to provide for the orderly wind down of IBRC which was being supported, at a heavy cost to the State, by the Promissory Notes. The relationship with the management of IBRC did not drive these strategic objectives, nor the decision making process surrounding the formulation, design and structuring of the Promissory Note transaction and liquidation of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 69 (16128/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 23/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if t h e clo sed p r o cess b y w h ich t h e f o r m er Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n d isp o sed o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ) w as f u lly in co m p lian ce w it h Eu r o p ean Un io n co m p et it io n an d St at e aid r u les; if h e r eceived an y co r r esp o n d en ce f r o m t h e Co m m issio n in r elat io n t o sam e; an d if so , t h e d et ails o f t h e Co m m issio n 's in t er est ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As the Deputy is aware, the sale of the company referred to in the question was run by the company itself and their advisors. In line with the relationship framework in place at the time IBRC were not required to consult with the Department or the Minister for Finance. IBRC was a creditor to the company who had an interest in the maximisation of proceeds from the sale of the company to maximise the recovery on the company's debts to IBRC. Neither I nor officials from my Department were involved in the transaction involving the company referred to in the question. There are no records on file with the Department of Finance from the European Commission around the transaction involving the company referred to in the question.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 305 (15583/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 21/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if st af f w h ich h is Dep ar t m en t al seco n d ed t o n t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n f r o m Sep t em b er 2012 r ep o r t ed t o h is Dep ar t m en t an y co n cer n s r elat ed t o p er so n s w o r kin g at t h e co r p o r at io n (d et ails su p p lied ) an d t h eir p o t en t ial co n f lict s o f in t er est r elat in g t o t h e d isp o sal o f an in d eb t ed en t it y b o u n d ar y cap it al; if t h e p er so n o n seco n d m en t in d icat ed t o w h o m t h e d eb t o f b o u n d ar y cap it al w as so ld ; if an y act io n w as t aken at t h e t im e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I have been advised that the senior official from my Department who was seconded to IBRC (who commenced his role in October 2012) did not raise any concerns relating to the person referred to in the question. I am further advised that the senior official from my Department who was seconded to IBRC was not involved in any discussions for or on behalf of IBRC in relation to transactions relating to Boundary Capital or with Boundary Capital.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 307 (15637/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 21/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce f u r t h er t o h is st at em en t t h at h is Dep ar t m en t h ad a n u m b er o f co n cer n s r eg ar d in g t h e q u alit y o f d ecisio n s t aken at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n o ver t h e sale o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ), if t h o se co n cer n s sp ecif ically in clu d ed t h e p o ssib ilit y t h at a sen io r st af f m em b er (d et ails su p p lied ) o f t h e co r p o r at io n h ad a t r ip le co n f lict o f in t er est in t h at t h e st af f m em b er sim u lt an eo u sly m an ag ed t h e co m p an y's acco u n t , t h e acco u n t o f t h e o w n er o f t h e u lt im at ely su ccessf u l b id d er f o r t h e co m p an y an d t h e p er so n al acco u n t o f t h e Ch ie Execu t iv e Of f icer o f t h e co m p an y d u r in g t h e sale p r o cess; if h is Dep ar t m en t m ad e an y en q u ir ies o n t h is sp ecif ic m at t er ; if so , if h e w ill sh ar e t h ese f in d in g s; if t h is sp ecif ic m at t er w as r aised b y h im o r h is o f f icials d u r in g t h e m eet in g s w h ich t o o k p lace ar isin g f r o m t h e sale o f t h e co m p an y; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Notwithstanding that officials from my Department had concerns regarding the quality of some decisions taken by IBRC prior to it's liquidation, I am not aware of and there are no records which suggest that there were any concerns with the person referred to in the question or of any potential conflicts of interest that existed in his role in IBRC. Therefore, I am unable to comment further on this matter.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 308 (15708/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 21/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce t h e n u m b er o f b id s t h at w er e r eceived d u r in g t h e f ir st r o u n d o f t h e sale o f an en t it y (d et ails su p p lied ) b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill p r o vid e a list o f t h o se b id s; if t h e co m p an y w h ich w as u lt im at ely su ccessf u l in p u r ch asin g t h e en t it y w as in f act am o n g t h e f ir st b id d er s; if t h at b id am o u n t ch an g ed o ver t h e co u r se o f t h e b id d in g p r o cess; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Following a review of the transaction concerning the company referred to in the question by officials in my Department on 11 June 2012, they were made aware by IBRC that 8 bids were received for the company referred to in the question. While there is evidence that certain bid amounts may have changed during the process, there is no record that officials in my Department were furnished with the names of the 8 bidders, the amounts which each bidder submitted in the first round or in the second round, nor the reasons behind any changes in bid amounts which may have occurred, so I am unable to comment further.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 86 (15104/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 16/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill in d icat e, w it h r esp ect t o a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ) seco n d ed t o t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n f r o m Sep t em b er 2012, t h e r ep o r t s, t h is p er so n p r ep ar ed d u r in g h is t en u r e at t h e Co r p o r at io n ; if h e w ill m ake co p ies o f t h ese r ep o r t s av ailab le; if t h at p er so n 's r em it w as t o exam in e d ecisio n s p r io r t o h is d ep lo ym en t ; t h e r eco m m en d at io n s t h at p er so n m ad e w it h r esp ect t o t r an sact io n s p r o p o sed b y t h e Co r p o r at io n d u r in g h is t en u r e; if t h at p er so n 's in t er v en t io n led t o ch an g es, o r t o t h e ab an d o n m en t o f an y p r o p o sed t r an sact io n ; if h e w il l p r o vid e d et ails o f sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

On 7 September 2012 it was announced to all staff in IBRC that the person referred to in the question was to be appointed as the Bank's new Head of Market Solutions on secondment from the Department of Finance, commencing the role on 2 October 2012. The person referred to in the question brought over 20 years experience in domestic and international wholesale banking to the role. The responsibilities of the person referred to in the question included: - Membership of the Bank's Group Executive Committee (GEXCO); - Membership of the Transaction Review Committee; - Contribute to the strategic leadership of the Bank; - Analyse existing investments within the portfolio, critically assess business plans, operations, management, processes, risks, and opportunities; - Structure/restructure loans/investments from an optimal financial perspective, negotiate the structure and preferred terms; - Identifying and developing deal opportunities with external investors and financiers that meet the various strategic and financial objectives of the Bank in wind down;


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. - Build and maintain dialogue with potential investors and counterparties to establish market opportunities and viable transaction options that assist the Bank meeting its wind down objectives; - Engagement will be across private equity funds, credit opportunity funds, real estate funds and sovereign wealth funds as well as banks and other providers of credit in the European markets; - Work with asset recovery teams; - Appoint brokers/advisors in accordance with the Bank's procurement and compliance policy; - Team management, and; - Lead the execution of transactions and engage with counter parties while involving internal group functional groups as well as external service providers. The person referred to in the question was not party to any planning, preparation or discussions surrounding the ultimate liquidation of IBRC in February 2013. While the person referred to in the question remained an employee of the Department of Finance during his secondment to IBRC, he worked solely for IBRC during this time with the Market Solutions team and heads of departments to ensure accurate data, information, due diligence and, if appropriate, disposal options for the portfolio. The work completed by the person referred to in the question, including all reports and proposals, was prepared and considered by the IBRC management/committees and, where appropriate, Board as part of the operation of the Bank. Details of any transactions which the person referred to in the question worked on during his secondment to IBRC are not held by this Department as these were matters for the Bank at that time.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 87 (15105/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 16/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill in d icat e, w it h r esp ect t o a p er so n (d et ails su p p lied ) seco n d ed t o t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n f r o m Sep t em b er 2012, t h e r easo n su ch an ap p o in t m en t w as m ad e, if t h e Min ist er w as, as h e h as st at ed n u m er o u s t im es, sat isf ied t h at t r an sact io n s at t h e Co r p o r at io n w er e b ein g car r ied o u t in t h e b est in t er est s o f t h e t axp ay er , in p ar t icu lar t h e t r an sact io n in vo lvin g t h e sale o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ); h is view s t h at so m e d ecisio n s at t h e Co r p o r at io n w er e q u est io n ab le, as t o w h et h er t h e t axp ayer 's in t er est s w er e f u lly ser v ed , an d t h at is t h e r easo n t h e seco n d m en t in q u est io n w as m ad e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

In September 2012 it was announced to all staff in IBRC that the person referred to in the question was to be appointed as the Bank's new Head of Market Solutions on secondment from the Department of Finance, commencing the role on 2 October 2012. This move was decided during a meeting between John Moran and the then CEO of IBRC in August 2012. Given the banking experience of the person referred to in the question it was decided that he would be seconded to IBRC to explore opportunities for deleveraging with a view to maximising the recovery for the taxpayer. This had the additional benefit of providing greater oversight while supporting the management team. The responsibilities of the person referred to in the question included: - Membership of the Bank's Group Executive Committee (GEXCO); - Membership of the Transaction Review Committee; - Contribute to the strategic leadership of the Bank; - Analyse existing investments within the portfolio, critically assess business plans, operations, management, processes, risks, and opportunities;


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. - Structure/restructure loans/investments from an optimal financial perspective, negotiate the structure and preferred terms; - Identifying and developing deal opportunities with external investors and financiers that meet the various strategic and financial objectives of the Bank in wind down; - Build and maintain dialogue with potential investors and counterparties to establish market opportunities and viable transaction options that assist the Bank meeting its wind down objectives; - Engagement will be across private equity funds, credit opportunity funds, real estate funds and sovereign wealth funds as well as banks and other providers of credit in the European markets; - Work with asset recovery teams; - Appoint brokers/advisors in accordance with the Bank's procurement and compliance policy; - Team management, and; - Lead the execution of transactions and engage with counter parties while involving internal group functional groups as well as external service providers. In relation to the transaction involving the sale of the company referred to in the question, as the deputy is aware, it was after officials in my Department received critical representations following the transaction involving the sale of the company referred to in the question that it was decided that Department of Finance officials would review the transaction in greater detail to better understand the decisions taken and the impact these decisions had on the process and the final recovery for the bank. At a meeting which I attended along with officials from my Department on 25 July 2012, senior management of IBRC assured me that the transaction involving the sale of the company referred to in the question had been thoroughly assessed by the IBRC Board and that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. Neither I nor officials from my Department reviewed all of the transactions undertaken at IBRC; as the Deputy is aware, a Relationship Framework dated 8th July 2009 was in place at the time the Board of IBRC approved the sale of the company referred to in the question. Under this Relationship Framework, the Board of IBRC were required to engage with the Minister for Finance on certain key issues which included "any material acquisitions, disposals, investments, realisations or other transactions, other than in the ordinary course of Anglo Irish Bank's banking business." It should be noted that this Relationship Framework did not include any specific monetary thresholds which would trigger mandatory consultation with the Minister for Finance. It should also be noted, that at that time, the ordinary course of the Bank's business was to conduct an orderly run-down and ultimate liquidation of the Bank. The revised Relationship Framework and Operational Protocol which was put in place on 29th March 2012 contained specific financial thresholds which would, from that date on, trigger mandatory consultation with the Minister for Finance for qualifying transactions. Again, any transactions outside these financial thresholds were deemed within the ordinary course of the Bank's business and it was not required that I or officials in my Department were made aware of them.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd.

QUESTION NO: 28 (13118/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r ORAL ANSWER o n 01/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce in r esp ect o f t h e Dep ar t m en t al r ev iew o f t h e sale o f Sit eser v t o Millin g t o n b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , t h e p r o cess t h at r esu lt ed in h im b ein g co n vin ced t h at t h e sale am o u n t ed t o t h e b est o u t co m e f o r t h e St at e; if h e an d h is o f f icials lo o ked at b o t h r o u n d s o f b id s; if so , t h e n u m b er an d n am e o f t h e co m p an ies t h at m ad e b id s in t h e f ir st r o u n d ; t h e p lace in t h e h ier ar ch y Millin g t o n f ell; t h e n u m b er o f t h o se b id s t h at w en t f o r w ar d t o t h e seco n d r o u n d ; t h e cr it er ia f o r m o v in g t o t h e seco n d r o u n d ; t h e p lace Millin g t o n , t h e w in n in g b id , f ell in t h e h ier ar ch y in t er m s o f t h e am o u n t s b id ; if t h e t en d er p r o cess w as u n if o r m f o r all b id d er s; if n o t , t h e r easo n f o r sam e; if n o t , t h e w ay t h e b id s w er e r an ked ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I am advised that, on foot of a meeting between officials from my Department and senior management of IBRC held on 31 May 2012, it was agreed that my Department would review this transaction to better understand the decisions taken by IBRC. This review took place, by way of a meeting between officials from my Department and senior management of IBRC, on 11 June 2012. At this meeting, IBRC officials explained how the sale process was conducted, from the selection of the original 50 candidates through to the 8 bids ultimately submitted and the selection of the winning bidder. Following this review, a further meeting was held on 25 July 2012, which I attended along with officials from my Department and the Chairman and CEO of IBRC. At this meeting, the transaction referred to in the question was discussed further, along with a number of other topics. I can confirm that at this meeting, it was put to senior management of IBRC that


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. officials in my Department had concerns with a number of decisions taken by IBRC in relation to the sale of SitServ including the decision to allow the sale process to be led by advisors of SiteServ, the bidding process, entering into exclusivity with one of the bidders and the decision to exclude trade buyers. It was at this meeting that senior management of IBRC confirmed to me that the transaction involving the sale of SiteServ was thoroughly assessed by the Board of IBRC prior to them approving it and that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. A further meeting between the former Secretary General of the Department of Finance, John Moran, and the then CEO of IBRC took place in August 2012 at which this matter was also further discussed. At that point, the transaction had been concluded and no further action could have been taken. Notwithstanding the fact that a new Relationship Framework had been put in place, it was decided (following the meeting with John Moran and the then CEO of IBRC in August 2012) that a senior Department of Finance official would be seconded to IBRC to explore opportunities for deleveraging with a view to maximising the recovery for the taxpayer. This had the additional benefit of providing greater oversight while supporting the management team. The secondment of Neil Ryan to IBRC commenced shortly thereafter.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 31(13119/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r ORAL ANSWER o n 01/04/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill p r o v id e a d et ailed acco u n t o f t h e d ialo g u e w h ich t o o k p lace b et w een h is Dep ar t m en t an d t h e f o r m er Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n in ad van ce o f , d u r in g an d af t er t h e in t r o d u ct io n o f t h e u p d at ed Fr am ew o r k Ag r eem en t g o ver n in g t h e r elat io n sh ip b et w een t h e b an k an d h im in Mar ch 2012; if h e w ill p r o vid e an it em ised list o f all su ch co r r esp o n d en ce, in clu d in g t h e p u r p o se an d d et ail o f t h e co r r esp o n d en ce; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As part of Ireland's third review under the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support, a report on which was published in September 2011 and is available on the Department of Finance website, there were a number of conditions/actions which Ireland committed to. One of which was to develop a framework to govern the exercise of the State's ownership rights in the banks resulting from the capital injections, including to put in place relationship frameworks with the banks to protect the commercial basis for the banks' operations while under State ownership.On 30 March 2012, Relationship Frameworks were put in place by my Department with each of the banks in which the State acquired an interest in the context of the financial crisis to govern the relationship between the State, as shareholder, and each bank. They were designed to recognise the separation of each bank from the State, to ensure their businesses would be run on a commercial, cost effective and independent basis to ensure the value of the banks as an asset to the State , and to limit the State s intervention to the extent necessary to protect the public interest.Under the Relationship Frameworks each bank was to remain a separate economic unit with independent power of decision with its board of directors and management team retaining responsibility for determining the bank's strategies and commercial policies and conducting its day-to-day operations.A revised Relationship Framework with IBRC was published on March 30, 2012 in line with the introduction of similar agreements for each of the other banks. That followed interaction with the management and Boards of each of the banks concerned. While I confirm that IBRC was consulted on an ongoing basis over a period of months in relation to the introduction of the revised Relationship Framework, the information requested


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. by the Deputy as part of this Parliamentary Question relating to the specific dialogue which took place between my Department and IBRC is currently the subject of a Freedom of Information request and will be released in due course as part of this Freedom of Information request should the Deciding Officer consider its full release to be appropriate. The Deciding Officer will make the materials released under this Freedom of Information request available to you upon their release.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NOS: 80 (12546/15) ,81 (12621/15) Dテ!L QUESTIONS ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y,Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/03/2015

* To ask the Minister for Finance if records were kept of the meeting or meetings he or officials of his Department held with the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation in respect of a sale (details supplied); if so, if he will include these records in his response; if not, the reason; if not, the questions he raised in respect of payment to directors of the company, in view of the large debt that was being written down, and the answers he received; the questions he raised in respect of the number of tenders considered; the reason the bid was more advantageous to the State; the questions he raised in respect of those who were involved in the tender process, in the various entities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Thursday, 26 March, 2015. * To ask the Minister for Finance if the former Irish Bank Resolution Corporation extended a 竄ャ10 million credit facility to an entity which was already heavily indebted to it (details supplied), at any point between 2010 and it's sale in 2012; if he will confirm that all due diligence procedures were followed in advance of the forwarding of this line of credit; if this 竄ャ10 million or outstanding portion thereof was specifically recovered through the sale of the entity concerned or if the money was written down entirely at that point; and if he will make a statement on the matter. - Catherine Murphy T.D. For WRITTEN answer on Thursday, 26 March, 2015.

REPLY.

As way of background on the transaction referred to in the question, following a meeting between officials from my Department and senior management of IBRC held on 31 May 2012 it was agreed that my Department would review this transaction to better understand the decisions taken by IBRC. This review took place, by way of a meeting between officials from my Department and senior management of IBRC, on 11 June 2012. Following this review, a further meeting was held on 25 July 2012, which I attended along with officials from my Department and senior management from IBRC. At this meeting, the transaction referred to in the question was discussed further, along with a number of other topics. A further meeting between the former Secretary General of the Department of Finance, John Moran, and the then CEO of IBRC took place in August 2012 at which this matter was further discussed. The file notes, minutes and other records regarding these meetings are currently the subject of Freedom of Information requests and will be released in due course as part of these Freedom


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. of Information requests should officials in my Department consider their full release to be appropriate. The Deciding Officer will make the materials released under these Freedom of Information requests available to you upon their release. Until those decisions are made by the Deciding Officer, I can confirm that at the meeting which I attended on 25 July 2012, it was put to senior management of IBRC that officials in my Department had concerns with a number of decisions taken by IBRC in relation to the sale of the company referred to in the question including the decision to allow the sale process to be led by advisors of the company referred to in the question, the decision to exclude trade buyers, the timing of exclusivity and the payment to shareholders. Senior management of IBRC confirmed to me at this meeting that the transaction involving the company referred to in the question was thoroughly assessed by the Board of IBRC prior to them approving it and that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. In relation to the Deputy's query on a â‚Ź10 million credit facility extended to the company referred to in the question between 2010 and the sale of the company in 2012, I am advised that it would not have been typical for decisions around credit facilities to be disclosed or discussed with Department of Finance officials unless required under the Relationship Framework which governed interactions between the Bank and the Department of Finance as these activities typically would have been within the ordinary course of business for the Bank. Officials in my Department have also contacted the Special Liquidators but they are unable to comment on individual cases as the information requested is confidential and it would not be appropriate for them to release such information. This being the case, I am unable to comment further on this matter.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 82 (12628/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/03/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill co n f ir m t h e r ecen t m ed ia r ep o r t s w h ich st at e t h at t h e b o ar d o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n t u r n ed d o w n a r ep o r t ed ly h ig h er o f f er f o r an en t it y (d et ails su p p lied ) b ecau se o n e elem en t o f t h at p r o p o sal in clu d ed a m an d at o r y eig h t -w eek d u e d ilig en ce exer cise; if h is at t en t io n h as b een d r aw n t o t h e f act t h at h ad t h e b o ar d ch o sen t h is r ep o r t ed b id , t h e n ew f r am ew o r k ag r eem en t w o u ld h ave b een in p lace o n ce t h e said eig h t w eek p er io d h ad exp ir ed ; if h e h as co n sid er ed t h at t h e sale o f t h e en t it y w as r u sh ed in t h at r esp ect ; if h e h as in v it ed an y exp lan at io n as t o w h at en d su ch a r u sh w as u n d er t aken f o r ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As part of parliamentary question 97 which was answered on 12 March 2015, the Deputy is aware of the process which was undertaken to introduce a revised Relationship Framework for IBRC and the reasons behind this. In relation to the sale of the company referred to in the question, it was after representations made by an unsuccessful bidder in the process and subsequent meetings between that party and officials in my Department that my officials met with IBRC and undertook a review of this transaction. Following this review, my officials were made aware that the transaction involving the sale of the company referred to in the question was run by the company referred to in the question along with its advisors. This review raised concerns with the quality of some of the decisions taken in respect of this transaction, including, among others, that a higher bid for the company referred to in the question was received after entering into an exclusivity agreement with the ultimate winning bidder. In light of concerns stemming from the review of the transaction by officials in my Department, I subsequently met with IBRC's Chairman and CEO to discuss this transaction. The Chairman and CEO confirmed to me that the transaction process and its terms had been


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. thoroughly assessed by the IBRC Board and that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State. The file notes, minutes and other records regarding the review of this transaction by my officials are currently the subject of Freedom of Information requests and will be released in due course as part of these Freedom of Information requests should the Deciding Officer consider their full release to be appropriate. The Deciding Officer will make the materials released under these Freedom of Information requests available to you upon their release.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 97 (10965/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 12/03/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce w h en t h e Eu r o p ean Co m m issio n ad v ised h is Dep ar t m en t o n t h e n ecessit y t o h ave in p lace a r elat io n sh ip f r am ew o r k, an d o p er at io n al p r o t o co l, t o g o ver n in t er act io n s b et w een h im , as Min ist er , an d t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; if t h at ad vice in d icat ed t h at a set f ig u r e w o u ld b e ad v isab le t o t r ig g er co n su lt at io n , w h er e a t r an sact io n w o u ld h av e an ad v er se im p act o n t h e cap it al o f t h e Co r p o r at io n ; if so , t h e r easo n t h er e w as a d elay in im p lem en t in g t h is ad vice; if h e w ill m ake availab le, co p ies o f all co r r esp o n d en ce b et w een h is Dep ar t m en t an d t h e Eu r o p ean Co m m issio n , r elat in g t o t h is m at t er ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As part of Ireland's third review under the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support, a report on which was published in September 2011 and is available on the Department of Finance website, there were a number of conditions/actions which Ireland committed to. One of which was to develop a framework to govern the exercise of the State's ownership rights in the banks resulting from the capital injections, including to put in place relationship frameworks with the banks to protect the commercial basis for the banks' operations while under government ownership. This matter was again discussed during the fourth review under the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support, the report on which is also available on the Department of Finance website. It was noted in this report that the recently formed banking division in the Department of Finance were "currently developing relationship frameworks with the banks, to ensure that their core businesses will be run on a commercial basis". The fifth review, the report to which was published in March 2012 noted that "The authorities are finalizing relationship frameworks with the covered banks consistent with their commitment that their core business will operate on a commercial basis".


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. The relationship framework's were in place with each of the banks under State ownership before the report on the sixth review under the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support was published in June 2012. Between each of these aforementioned reviews, officials in my Department were progressing the introduction of relationship frameworks with each of the banks through ongoing discussions and negotiation. Each of the Relationship Frameworks were prepared following significant legal and competition law input from the State s legal advisors, which included, among other advice, the inclusion of financial thresholds which would trigger consultation with the Minister for Finance. Before the Relationship Frameworks for each of the banks were introduced, it was required that they be reviewed by the Directorate-General for Competition and the Irish Competition Authority. On 30 March 2012, Relationship Frameworks were put in place by my Department with each of the banks in which the State acquired an interest in the context of the financial crisis to govern the relationship between the State, as shareholder, and each bank. They were designed to recognise the separation of each bank from the State, to ensure their businesses would be run on a commercial, cost effective and independent basis to ensure the value of the banks as an asset to the State , and to limit the State s intervention to the extent necessary to protect the public interest. Under the Relationship Frameworks each bank was to remain a separate economic unit with independent power of decision with its board of directors and management team retaining responsibility for determining the bank's strategies and commercial policies and conducting its day-to-day operations. As the Deputy is aware, IBRC had a Relationship Framework in place from July 2009 pursuant to the Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Act 2009. My officials will review the files surrounding the implementation of this original Relationship Framework for Anglo Irish Bank Corporation and will revert to the Deputy on this matter. A revised Relationship Framework with IBRC was published on March 30, 2012 in line with the introduction of similar agreements for each of the other banks. That followed considerable interaction with the management and Board of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 98 (10967/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 12/03/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce r elat in g t o t h e sale o f a co m p an y b y t h e f o r m er Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n (d et ails su p p lied ), if h is at t en t io n w as d r aw n , in ad van ce o f t h e sale, t h at a p o r t io n o f t h e ag r eed sale p r ice w as t o b e d iver t ed t o sh ar eh o ld er s o f t h e en t it y b ein g so ld , w h ich r esu lt ed in sig n if ican t su m s b ein g accr u ed t o sev er al p er so n s o n t h e b o ar d o f t h e en t it y; if t h e b o ar d o f t h e Co r p o r at io n sim ilar ly w er e aw ar e o f t h is in f o r m at io n ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

I refer to my response to PQ 10704 answered on 11th March 2015 from which I have drawn in responding to this question. As set out in the reponse to PQ 10704 answered on 11th March 2015, under the then existing relationship framework the bank was not obligated to consult with me before approving the sale of the company referred to by the Deputy. Upon the receipt of critical representations following the transaction in question, Department of Finance officials inquired about the transaction with IBRC management as part of their regular engagement. Following initial discussions, they agreed with IBRC's Chairman and CEO that they would review the transaction involving the company referred to in the question in greater detail to better understand the decisions taken and the impact these decisions had on the process and the final recovery for the bank. As part of the review, senior management of IBRC made Department of Finance officials aware of the details of the transaction process and the sale in meetings held between both parties. This review raised concerns with the quality of some of the decisions taken in respect of this transaction, including, among others, that a payment had been paid to the shareholders of the company referred to in the question. In light of these concerns, I subsequently met with IBRC's Chairman and CEO to discuss concerns regarding this transaction. The Chairman and CEO confirmed to me that the


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. transaction process and its terms, including the shareholder payment, had been thoroughly assessed by the IBRC Board and that the transaction was managed in the best manner possible to achieve the best result for the State.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 226 (10566/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 10/03/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce f u r t h er t o Par liam en t ar y Qu est io n No . 75 o f 4 Mar ch 2015, if h e w ill in d icat e if t h e b o ar d , o r m an ag em en t , o f Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , co n su lt ed w it h h im , in ad v an ce o f t h e ch an g e t h at t o o k p lace t o t h e Relat io n sh ip Fr am ew o r k an d Op er at io n al Pr o t o co l, w h ich g o ver n s in t er act io n s b et w een h im self ,as Min ist er , an d t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n ; t h e set o f cir cu m st an ces w h ich led t o t h e in t r o d u ct io n o f a n ew f r am ew o r k, an d p r o t o co l; w h er e t h e au t h o r it y t o issu e it d er iv ed f r o m ; t h o se w h o t o o k t h e d ecisio n t o d o so , an d t h e r easo n f o r sam e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

As part of the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support, there were a number of conditions/actions which Ireland committed to, one of which was to develop a framework to govern the exercise of the State's ownership rights in the banks resulting from the capital injections, including to put in place relationship frameworks with the banks to establish the commercial basis for the banks' operations under government ownership. The commitment under paragraph 10 of the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies dated 10 February 2012 indicated that the Minister for Finance was "finalizing relationship frameworks with the covered banks." On this basis, Relationship Frameworks were put in place by my Department with each of the banks in which the State acquired an interest in the context of the financial crisis to govern the relationship between the State, as shareholder, and each bank. They were designed to recognise the separation of each bank from the State, to ensure their businesses would be run on a commercial, cost effective and independent basis designed to ensure the value of the banks as an asset to the State , and limit the State s intervention to the extent necessary to protect the public interest.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. IBRC had a Relationship Framework in place from 2009. A revised Relationship Framework with IBRC was published on March 30, 2012 in line with the introduction of Relationship Frameworks for each of the banks in which the State had acquired an interest in the context of the financial crisis. That followed considerable interaction with the management and Board of IBRC.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 75 (9582/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 04/03/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce f u r t h er t o Par liam en t ar y Qu est io n No . 30 o f 4 Feb r u ar y 2015, t h e r easo n h e st at ed in h is r ep ly t h at t h e sale o f an en t it y b y Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n p r io r t o it s liq u id at io n (d et ails su p p lied ), w h ich r esu lt ed in a n et lo ss t o IBRC o f ap p r o xim at ely 竄ャ105 m illio n , d id n o t m eet t h e f in an cial t h r esh o ld s w h ich t r ig g er m an d at o r y co n su lt at io n w it h t h e St at e u n d er Par ag r ap h 4 o f t h e Op er at io n al Pr o t o co l f o r t h e Relat io n sh ip Fr am ew o r k w h ich g o ver n ed in t er act io n s b et w een h im self as Min ist er an d IBRC, ev en t h o u g h t h o se t h r esh o ld s clear ly st at e t h at an y ad ver se im p act o n t h e t o t al cap it al o f IBRC o f 竄ャ100m o r m o r e sh o u ld d o so ; if h e w ill acco u n t f o r t h e r easo n n o su ch co n su lt at io n t o o k p lace in t h is in st an ce; if h e r eceived an y r ep r esen t at io n s r eg ar d in g t h is sale f r o m an y o f t h e p ar t ies in vo lved ; if so , if h e w ill p r o vid e t h e d at es an d n am es o f p ar t ies co n cer n ed ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

The Relationship Framework and Operational Protocol dated 29th March 2012 between the Minister for Finance and Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC), referred to in my answer to Parliamentary Question No. 30 of 4th February 2015, came into effect after the sale of the company referred to in the question. A previous Relationship Framework dated 8th July 2009 was in effect at the time the Board of IBRC approved the sale of the company referred to in the question on 15th March 2012. Under this previous Relationship Framework, the Board were required to engage with the Minister for Finance on certain key issues which included "Any material acquisitions, disposals, investments, realisations or other transactions, other than in the ordinary course of Anglo Irish Bank's banking business."


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. It should be noted that this previous Relationship Framework did not include any specific monetary thresholds which would trigger mandatory consultation with the Minister for Finance. It should also be noted, that at that time, the ordinary course of the Bank's business was to conduct an orderly run-down and ultimate liquidation of the Bank. As such, IBRC's efforts, as a secured lender, to maximise the recovery on its loans to the company referred to in the question was considered to be in the ordinary course of business. For that reason, and under the Relationship Framework in place at that time, IBRC were not required to consult with the Minister for Finance on this matter in advance of making a decision. It should be noted that the Relationship Framework and Operational Protocol put in place on 29th March 2012 contained specific financial thresholds which would, from that date on, trigger mandatory consultation with the Minister for Finance for qualifying transactions.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 79 (8718/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 26/02/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill p r o vid e a co p y o f t h e Relat io n sh ip Fr am ew o r k, w h ich g o ver n ed t h e in t er act io n s b et w een h is Dep ar t m en t an d t h e f o r m er m an ag em en t an d b o ar d o f t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , p r io r t o it s liq u id at io n ; if h e w ill in d icat e t h e p r ecise f in an cial t h r esh o ld s u n d er t h e f r am ew o r k, w h ich w o u ld h ave t r ig g er ed m an d at o r y co n su lt at io n in ad v an ce o f a t r an sact io n , an d / o r d isp o sal; if h e w ill p r o v id e a list o f all in st an ces, w h er e su ch co n su lt at io n t o o k p lace, an d t h e su m s in vo lved ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

A copy of the Relationship Framework (including the Operational Protocol), which governed interactions between I, as Minister for Finance, and Irish Bank Resolution Corporation can be found on the Department of Finance website through the below link: http://www.finance.gov.ie/sites/default/files/Relationship%20Framework%20incorporating% 20Operational%20Protocol.pdf Paragraph 4 of the Operational Protocol for the Relationship Framework in respect of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation contains the consent/consultation procedure between the Bank and I, as Minister for Finance. Paragraph 4 of the Operational Protocol states that, "For the purposes of paragraph 14 of the Relationship Framework, the Bank shall consult with the Minister in accordance with the Consent/Consultation Procedure in respect of any proposed decision or action that is within the Ordinary Course of Business but which: 4.1 is likely to have an adverse impact on total regulatory capital of the Bank of greater than 竄ャ100 million;


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. 4.2 is an actual or potential acquisition, investment or disposal (or series of related transactions) and the total purchase price, investment or proceeds individually or in aggregate could exceed â‚Ź100 million; or 4.3 is a realisation, reorganisation, restructuring or other transaction or event and it is likely to have an adverse impact on the total equity of the Bank of greater than â‚Ź100 million." The Relationship Framework outlines the instances in which Irish Bank Resolution Corporation were required to gain consent from me or consult with me, as Minister for Finance, and these instances went beyond individual transactions and/or disposals; they also included consent for board approvals, management appointments and litigation matters. In total, there were 29 instances where the Bank required Ministerial consent or consultation but given customer confidentiality in certain instances and on-going litigation in other instances, I am unable to provide further detail on the individual instances where Ministerial consent or consideration was required.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 30 (4700/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r ORAL ANSWER o n 04/02/2015 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce f u r t h er t o Par liam en t ar y Qu est io n No . 220 o f 16 Decem b er 2014, if h e w ill in d icat e if , n o t w it h st an d in g t h e co m m er cial in d ep en d en ce o f Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n at t h e t im e, h is Dep ar t m en t d id en d eavo u r t o q u er y t h e r easo n su ch a lar g e lo ss t o t h e St at e, am o u n t t o o ver 竄ャ100 m illio n , w as p er m it t ed t o h ap p en in t h e sale o f t h e co m p an y co n cer n ed (d et ails su p p lied ); if n o t , t h e r easo n h is Dep ar t m en t w as n o t co n cer n ed t h at su ch a lar g e lo ss h ad o ccu r r ed w h en t h e clear o b ject iv e o f IBRC w as t o m axim ise t h e r et u r n t o t h e St at e; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

For clarity's sake, the sale of Siteserv occurred prior to the Special Liquidation of IBRC, under the previous board and management of IBRC. As already indicated to the Deputy in Parliamentary Question No. 220 of 16 December 2014, notwithstanding the State s ownership of the bank at the time, it was a matter for the board and management of IBRC to determine and implement all commercial decisions in their organisation. As set out in the Relationship Framework, which governed the relationship between the State and IBRC at the time, the State did not intervene in the day to day operations of the bank or its management decisions regarding commercial matters which were a matter for the board and management. For the avoidance of doubt, the Relationship Framework ensured that IBRC continued to operate as an independent operator in the market, albeit on a work-out basis only. Under the Relationship Framework, IBRC were obliged to consult with the State in respect of any proposed decision that was within the ordinary course of business but which met certain financial thresholds; the sale of Siteserv did not meet these financial thresholds, therefore it was solely a matter for the board and management of IBRC at the time. Notwithstanding this


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. position, my officials did take an active interest in the running of the bank through their interaction with the management of the bank at the time. I am aware that KPMG Corporate Finance and Davy Corporate Finance were engaged by Siteserv to run a joint sales process to sell Siteserv which was in severe financial difficulties and was unable to service or pay back its loans to IBRC. The sales process was initiated by Siteserv and overseen by a subcommittee of the Siteserv Board. The sales process involved two stages and IBRC was briefed after each stage. The Board of Siteserv, as advised by KPMG Corporate Finance and Davy Corporate Finance, recommended the successful bid as representing the best return for IBRC. I am advised that the Board of IBRC at that time were satisfied that this was the case.


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 58 (48755/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 17/12/2014 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e w ill p r o vid e an it em ised list o f all d isp o sals m ad e b y t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n p r io r t o t h e ap p o in t m en t o f a sp ecial liq u id at o r ; t h e o r ig in al valu e o f t h e liab ilit y o r lo an co n cer n ed , in each case; t h e am o u n t r ealised at d isp o sal; t h e m et h o d t h e d isp o sal w as m ad e t h r o u g h in clu id n g exam in er sh ip , r eceiver sh ip , d ir ect sale o r o t h er ; t h e d at e at w h ich t h e d isp o sal w as m ad e; if h e w ill p r o v id e t h e sam e in f o r m at io n in r esp ect o f t h e p er io d IBRC h as b een in sp ecial liq u id at io n ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

With regards to the information requested on those transactions that have taken place both prior and since the appointment of the Special Liquidators, I am advised that this information is considered commercially sensitive and therefore will not be releasing the information. However, the Special Liquidators prepared a progress report in June of this year which includes details in relation to the sales process concluded by the Special Liquidators up to the date of this report (6th June 2014). The progress report is published on the Department of Finance website (http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/progress-reportupdate-successful-special-liquidation-ibrc ). Furthermore, under Section 306 of the Companies Act, the Special Liquidators are required to send to the registrar of companies a statement containing the prescribed particulars about the proceedings in and position of the liquidation of IBRC after 2 years from the date IBRC was put into liquidation (6 February 2013).


Parliamentary Questions by Catherine Murphy TD concerning the sale of Siteserv ltd. QUESTION NO: 220 (48159/15) Dテ!L QUESTION ad d r essed t o t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce (Dep u t y Mich ael No o n an ) b y Dep u t y Cat h er in e Mu r p h y f o r WRITTEN ANSWER o n 16/12/2014 To ask t h e Min ist er f o r Fin an ce if h e is sat isf ied t h at t h e Ir ish Ban k Reso lu t io n Co r p o r at io n , in it s d isp o sal o f a co m p an y (d et ails su p p lied ) in Mar ch 2012, act ed in t h e b est f in an cial in t er est o f t h e St at e; if h is at t en t io n h as b een d r aw n t o t h e co m p an y b ein g so ld t o a m u ch lo w er b id ; if so , if h e so u g h t a sat isf act o r y an sw er as t o t h e r easo n ; t h e r easo n t h e co m p an y w as n o t p u t in t o exam in er sh ip o r r eceiv er sh ip ; if h e h as q u est io n ed t h e r easo n t h e sam e leg al r ep r esen t at ives act ed f o r b o t h t h e co m p an y in q u est io n an d t h e p u r ch aser ; an d if h e w ill m ake a st at em en t o n t h e m at t er . REPLY.

Notwithstanding the State s ownership of the bank at the time, Irish Bank Resolution Corporation operated at an arm s length capacity from the State in relation to commercial issues. It was a matter for the board and management to determine and implement such policy in their organisation. Therefore, commercial decisions in relation to IBRC were solely a decision for the bank. I am aware that KPMG Corporate Finance and Davy Corporate Finance ran a joint sales process to sell Siteserv which was in severe financial difficulties and was unable to service or pay back its loans to IBRC. The sale process was initiated by Siteserv and overseen by a subcommittee of the Siteserv Board. The sale process involved two stages and IBRC was briefed after each stage. The Board of Siteserv, as advised by KPMG Corporate Finance and Davy Corporate Finance, recommended the successful bid as representing the best return for IBRC. I am advised that the Board of the bank at that time were satisfied that this was the case.


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