Confidentiality claims ‘may inhibit IBRC inquiry’
Judge Brian Cregan told Taoiseach Enda Kenny last week by letter he could not proceed with the probe into transactions and sales of debts carried out by IBRC.
He said that legal concerns were preventing him from proceeding. In the letter, released by Mr Kenny’s department yesterday, he said: “As a result of the determinations made by the commission in relation to confidentiality and privilege, the commission is not in apposition to proceed with its investigation into any of the relevant ‘write-off’ transactions.”
This decision by the inquiry’s sole member resulted in the Cabinet considering options yesterday to overcome the legal impasse, which is now likely to see the probe only complete its work after the general election. A key part of the inquiry is the examination of the sale of company Siteserv by IBRC to businessman Denis O’Brien and whether this deal was conducted properly.
The judge told Mr Kenny IBRC’s special liquidators had submitted a large volume of documentation to the inquiry but, crucially, had asserted a duty of confidentiality over all the documents, believed to number some 200,000.
Judge Cregan added: “The commission has determined that a duty of confidentiality does apply to all of the documents. Similarly, the commission has determined that the special liquidators are entitled to claim privilege over any documentation containing such legal advice.”
The Irish Examiner revealed this week how the Department of Finance has also claimed confidentiality over releasing its documents to the probe. Judge Cregan had confirmed this in his letter to the Taoiseach.
Judge Cregan said the commission was in the course of determining if the department’s submissions and documents were in fact covered by confidentiality and privilege. Such a scenario would likely restrict their circulation to other parties involved in the inquiry and even possibly their addition to the evidence.
Judge Cregan said he was preparing his interim report for Mr Kenny, which would also be circulated to others mentioned or covered in it. He told Mr Kenny this report would also seek an extension of the inquiry’s deadline.
