Labour checking legality of raid on pension reserve fund

THE Government could face a legal challenge over its attempt to use €17.5 billion of the National Pension Reserve Fund (NPRF) to refinance the banking system.

Labour Finance spokeswoman Joan Burton said that her party’s legal advisers were checking the legalisation surrounding the NPRF to ensure that Fianna Fáil claims that a “government directive” was enough to divert the fund from its established use were actually true.

“Proportions of the fund have already been used to invest in preference shares in the banks, but whether the liquidation of the fund to be used to further shore up the banks is legal is highly questionable.