Cowen and McCreevy will be ordered to appear at banking inquiry

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By Fiachra Ó Cionnaith

Political Reporter, Irish Examiner

Former Taoiseach Brian Cowen and ex-finance minister Charlie McCreevy will be ordered to attend long-awaited public banking inquiry grillings within eight weeks in correspondence to be sent later today.

The Irish Examiner understands the cross-party Oireachtas group will inform two of the most important figures of the Celtic Tiger years they must explain their actions at the hearings by the middle of June.

In letters due to be sent to the former senior politicians this afternoon, Mr Cowen and Mr McCreevy will be told they must subject themselves to compulsory questioning over why they put forward a series of "giveaway" budgets at the height of the boom, and whether they listened or ignored concerns about an over-heating economy.

Mr Cowen is also due to undergo intense questioning over his role on the notorious night of the bank guarantee in September 2008, the actions his government took to address the crisis, and the impact on wider Irish society.

While the orders for interviews - which will be followed later this month by a similar call to former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern - were expected, they are likely to provoke a significant reaction from the public, many of whom have demanded public grillings of the officials since the crash more than half a decade ago.

Under banking inquiry rules, the politicians cannot refuse to attend the hearings, which must take place within eight weeks of the notification letters being sent out.

Celtic Tiger era

Mr Cowen was a key part of Fianna Fáil governments for over a decade spanning the Celtic Tiger era, including four years as finance minister between 2004 and 2008, and led the country as Taoiseach between May 2008 and January 2011.

Mr McCreevy was finance minister between 1997 and 2004, before being sent to Brussels as EU commissioner for internal markets and services, and is widely seen as being behind a series of giveaway budgets which helped fuel the boom.

Among the other individuals due to be told later today to appear will be senior officials from the Department of Finance during the Celtic Tiger boom, including ex-secretary generals David Doyle and Kevin Cardiff.

The inquiry has already questioned members of the media, property experts and economists since beginning hearings at the start of the year.

While it has faced some criticism for failing to pin down who was responsible for the crash to date, the next three months before interviews end in July are expected to prove far sterner affairs.

Among the individuals already scheduled to attend over the coming weeks will be disgraced former financial regulator Patrick Neary, senior bankers employed at the height of the boom, and others who were in the room during the night of the bank guarantee.

Ex-European Central Bank president Jean Claude Trichet is also due to meet with the body at the Institute for International and European Affairs in Dublin on April 30, although he has controversially refused to meet the inquiry on the grounds of Leinster House.

As previously reported by the Irish Examiner, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern is likely to be told before the end of April that he must attend a hearing in July, with banking inquiry chair and Labour TD for Cork South Central, Ciarán Lynch, expecting all future interviewees will be told to appear in letters later this month.

Speaking in January, Mr Ahern said he would be willing to go before the banking inquiry “if I’m asked”.