Banking crisis - Frank and frightening

WE got another chilling glimpse of the depth of the crisis facing this country yesterday when the chief executive of the National Treasury Management Agency Dr Michael Somers told a Dáil Public Accounts Committee that his organisation said it is not adequately staffed to deal with the banking crisis.

He also told the politicians that he was not sure how the National Asset Management Agency would interact with his agency.

Dr Somers’ frankness is commendable but he did little to put the public mind at rest. His assertion that NAMA would be “extremely controversial” and that the people in the courts were lining up for a “bonanza” does little to reassure a society so angered with the legal costs already attached to various tribunals. The legacy of our reckless bankers is truly frightening.