Cowen to tell bank inquiry he didn’t force Lenihan into guarantee

Former Taoiseach Brian Cowen will claim he did not force then finance minister Brian Lenihan to include Anglo Irish and Irish Nationwide in the controversial 2008 bank guarantee at a hotly anticipated bank inquiry meeting this week.

The ex-Fianna Fáil leader, who has become synonymous with Ireland’s economic crash since the end of Celtic Tiger, will also insist his long-questioned decision to include the firms was done because he genuinely believed it was the cheapest option available.

Details of the former political heavyweight’s evidence to the cross-party inquiry were controversially leaked to a Sunday newspaper yesterday before Mr Cowen faced two high-profile grillings from the group this Thursday and next Wednesday.

According to the records, the former taoiseach will confirm to the inquiry he asked Mr Lenihan to leave the room with him on the night of the September 29, 2008 bank guarantee for a private meeting, previous witnesses have insisted that this meeting resulted in the finance minister’s opposition to including Anglo Irish and Irish Nationwide suddenly dissolve.

However, despite claims Mr Lenihan was effectively forced to accept the plan by his superior, Mr Cowen will argue the meeting was not “adversarial or confrontational” and instead saw him explain that a guarantee was potentially cheaper option than an “open ended” nationalisation.

In previous inquiry hearings former Department of Finance secretary general Kevin Cardiff said Mr Lenihan was “overruled” by Mr Cowen.

Outgoing Central Bank governor Patrick Honohan also said the decision to guarantee instead of nationalise cost the State “€2-10bn.”

Mr Cowen will also deny claims he was “beholden to the property market” while in office, insisting boom era budgets were based on “conservative assumptions.”

The former taoiseachwill be among the first politicians to attend as its key stage begins this week, with former finance minister Charlie McCreevy first to appear this Wednesday.

Among the questions Mr Cowen will face will be those surrounding a secret government group tasked with examining a guarantee months before the crash happened, when it was believed Ireland knew it was likely to need a bailout, and why exactly Anglo Irish was included in a guarantee.

Meanwhile, it is understood bank inquiry officials are to contact gardaí over the leaking of Mr Cowen’s witness statement, the second such leak in a month.