Fingleton acknowledges taxpayers’ burden

FORMER Irish Nationwide boss Michael Fingleton has acknowledged the heavy penalty taxpayers have paid for the banking crisis a day after it emerged more money is needed to bail out the institution he once headed.

Jetting in from Spain yesterday, Mr Fingleton said he regretted that taxpayers had been forced to bail out the troubled building society at a cost initially set at €2.7 billion but revised upwards to €3.2bn.

Asked by RTÉ if he felt any sense of remorse towards the taxpayer, Mr Fingleton replied: “Of course I have. Of course I have. Like everybody else. I have indeed.”