Cowen rejects claim that Government influenced Anglo report
Taoiseach Brian Cowen today rejected claims that senior government officials influenced a statement by the former chairman of nationalised Anglo Irish Bank weeks after it was put into state control.
The Department of Finance was accused of encouraging Donal O’Connor not to be too negative in a letter to shareholders published with the bank’s 2008 annual report.
Labour leader Eamon Gilmore claimed confidential internal minutes from a meeting between Anglo and the Central Bank in February last year show the ex-Anglo boss was urged to tone down comments on the need for emergency funding.
Mr Gilmore said Mr O’Connor was anxious to publish a tell-it-as-it-is statement, but the department drafted a less negative version.
Mr Gilmore claimed it was an example of the Government directing the bank to put a gloss on sensitive financial information.
“We have here, according to this, a direct interference by Government through the Department of Finance, in which effectively it was encouraging ... the chairman of the board of the bank to effectively doctor the information that was being released to the public, not to share with the public and indeed the then bank’s shareholders ... of what was the real state of the bank’s finances,” the Labour chief told the Dáil.
Mr Cowen hit back, claiming the contents of chairman’s statement reflected his own views.
“I’m afraid to ascribe that motivation to the department’s comments is a conspiracy theory too far,” the Taoiseach said.
Mr Cowen said it would be expected that the chairman’s draft statement would be forwarded to the department for comment.
“The chairman’s statement was finalised to reflect the chairman’s considered views and published with the annual report,” he said.
“The chairman’s statement was his own and reflected his views.”
The Department of Finance said the chairman’s statement is a matter for the chairman of the bank.
