Appleby defends Anglo probe

An auditing chief has been appointed to fill the role of the outgoing director of corporate enforcement, Paul Appleby.

Ian Drennan, chief executive of the Irish auditing and accounting supervisory authority, will begin his first day in the high-profile post tomorrow.

But as Mr Appleby stepped down after 10 years in the job, he called for a change in the law to tackle white-collar crimes.

He said gardaí should be given more than 24 hours to question suspects on serious corporate and financial matters.

Mr Appleby, who led a four-year probe into allegations of rogue trading at the former Anglo Irish Bank, said there are legislative changes which could be made “which would help the fight”.

“I think one area that could be considered is perhaps extending the 24-hour detention period of suspects for a longer period,” he told RTE.

“That’s a policy decision but there are provisions for up to seven days, obviously under serious court supervision, in the case of drugs and other offences.

“And certainly as a result of a very detailed investigation there are a lot of issues to be put to potential suspects and 24 hours, even with breaks, is a very challenging time frame and that is something that can be looked at again.”

Elsewhere, Mr Appleby defended the length of time it took to carry out his “robust” investigation into Anglo, which concluded earlier this year and resulted in three senior executives being charged in the criminal courts.

“We have taken the right approach,” he said.

“We have been methodical, we have gone at it very carefully as one has to be and it has been useful and welcome that we have got some decisions from the Director of Public Prosecutions in the recent past and hopefully some more decisions will follow.”

Richard Bruton, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, thanked Mr Appleby for his contribution. “As the first director, he has contributed significantly to shaping that role and to establishing the compliance and enforcement regime for company law that exists today,” said Mr Bruton.

He also wished Dr Drennan every success in the challenging task ahead.

“Having held the position of chief executive officer of the Irish auditing and accounting supervisory authority for the past eight years, and having led both the establishment and development of that organisation over that period, Mr Drennan brings with him a wealth of experience in the areas of advocacy, regulation and enforcement to the role,” the minister said.