Fine Gael to seek cut in NAMA size

FINE GAEL is seeking a major reduction in the size of NAMA in order to “protect the Irish taxpayer” and prevent the creation of a huge monopoly.

It also wants the introduction of safeguards to prevent manipulation of the property and banking markets, said Senator Eugene Regan, Fine Gael’s Senate justice spokesman.

In a new submission to the European Commission, Mr Regan has outlined steps that can be taken by the Commission to prevent the creation of a monopoly and serious distortion of competition in the Irish property and banking markets.

He has called for Anglo Irish Bank and performing loans to be excluded from NAMA, which he says should be subject to normal banking regulation with EU level vetting of the pricing of property backed loans. The exclusion of performing loans and the state- owned Anglo Irish Bank would cut the size of the NAMA exposure from an estimated €54 billion at present to €25bn. Such a move “would reduce the risk and cost to the Irish taxpayer of the NAMA gamble”, he said.

He is also concerned that future Government policies in areas such as taxation, planning, social housing and transport will attempt to skew the value of properties secured by loans that have been acquired by NAMA.

As it is presently set up the NAMA project “threatens to smother competition in the Irish market for property development and finance”, he says.

“The introduction of an 80% windfall tax on newly-rezoned land as part of the NAMA legislation is a clear indication of the potential for manipulation of the Irish land and property markets in a way that could favour the interests of NAMA over other interests,” he said.