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Back to Appendix 3: Banking Inquiry Operating Model
These procedures are intended to set out for witnesses the methods to be operated by the Joint Committee of Inquiry. If there are any queries in respect of the procedures, enquiries should be addressed to
biwitnessmanager@oireachtas.ie.
The Banking Inquiry has been established to address the reasons Ireland experienced a systemic banking crisis, including the political, economic, social, cultural and financial behaviour and factors involved in these which impacted on or contributed to the crisis by investigating relevant matters relating to banking systems and practices, regulatory and supervisory systems and practices, crisis in management systems and policy responses and the preventative reforms implemented in the wake of the crisis.
The Inquiry has been divided into two phases. Public meetings for the context phase ran from January 2015 to April 2015, with public meetings for the nexus phase commencing from 22 April 2015.
Certain criminal proceedings on matters involving personnel in the banking sector have been scheduled to take place in the near future. The enclosed document dated the 11th February, 2015 lists relevant upcoming hearings. Due care must be taken to ensure that no prejudice is caused to these hearings. The enclosed list has been provided to the Joint Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis by the DPP. The DPP has consented to the Joint Committee forwarding same to you with the proviso that it is for guidance purposes only and is being disclosed on the strict understanding that it will be retained by you for the purposes of aiding your compliance with the Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures Act 2013 (“the 2013 Act”). This document must be treated as confidential and used only in connection with your interaction with the Joint Committee.
The Joint Committee will not examine allegations of criminal activity against any named individuals or organisations either in Ireland or in other jurisdictions.
All persons considered relevant to the Joint Committee’s lines of inquiry or themes arising therefrom will be requested to furnish written statements to the Inquiry.
All written statements will be treated as evidence for the purposes of the Inquiry and may be relied upon by the Joint Committee in making findings in the final report.
The Joint Committee reserves the right to call any person who has furnished a written statement to give oral evidence before the Joint Committee.
All statements received by the Joint Committee will be published on the website of the Joint Committee after due consideration by the Joint Committee.
Prior to publication, the Joint Committee will consider whether any statement potentially affects the right to the good name of any person and will furnish such a person with the statement and permit them a specified period to furnish any response thereto in writing. If a person intends to exercise such rights, they should notify the Joint Committee via biwitnessmanager@oireachtas.ie.
If a statement is furnished with allegations which are irrelevant to the lines of inquiry directed to be dealt with and/or contains allegations of a criminal nature, the Joint Committee may request the person to furnish a new statement and/or reserves the right to redact such portions of the statement as the Joint Committee considers irrelevant or prejudicial.
All statements should have annexed thereto any documents considered relevant by the witness, both in the context of the written statement and for the purposes of a public meeting that the witness will be required to attend (where relevant).
The Joint Committee reserves the right not to receive any additional documents after receipt of the statement unless it can be shown that the witness could not have reasonably contemplated the relevance of the document at the time of the making of the statement.
All witnesses are asked to confirm in their written statement that any documents provided are true and accurate and whether they are or are not in the public domain.
In the case of oral evidence given in public meetings, the Joint Committee will consider whether it is appropriate, having regard to fair procedures, to furnish a person identifiable in that oral evidence with a transcript of the relevant meetings. If it does furnish a person with a transcript of the meeting it will permit them a specified period to furnish any response thereto (“the Section 25 Statement”). If a person intends to exercise such rights they should notify the Joint Committee via biwitnessmanager@oireachtas.ie.
A Section 25 Statement furnished by a person in response to such a notification will be published on the website of the Joint Committee after due consideration by the Joint Committee. In general it is not intended to disseminate such Section 25 Statements to parties who are named or identifiable in the statement but the Joint Committee reserves the right to do so.
The Joint Committee intends to compile a Booklet of Core Documents relevant to the lines of inquiry and/or themes each witness is being asked to address.
All witnesses will be furnished with these documents at least fourteen days prior to the date fixed for the meeting which they are scheduled to attend. Persons who in the first instance are only providing a written statement will also be provided with Booklets of Core Documents and a set of questions relating to the lines of inquiry on which they are being asked to provide a statement.
If on foot of receiving a Booklet of Core Documents, an issue arises in relation to a witness statement previously submitted, the affected person may submit a supplemental statement on a voluntary basis that is limited to matters arising from those documents. This statement should be of a reasonable length and as such it is recommended that it is no longer than 2,000 words. Any such supplemental statement should be submitted not later than 10 days after the receipt of the Booklet.
The Joint Committee reserves the right to add to the core documents at any time including by issuing a supplemental Booklet of Core Documents. If a supplemental Booklet is issued to a witness attending a public session, they will generally be furnished with this one week in advance of the scheduled hearing date and if there are any issues arising in relation to a statement previously submitted, that witness will be afforded an opportunity to address those issues at their oral hearing. Any such opportunity must be limited to the matters arising from the supplementary Booklet.
The core documents are intended to be used for the purpose of examinations at the oral hearings. They will form a part of the evidence to be considered by the Joint Committee and may be relied upon by them in making findings in the final report. The documents included in the core booklet will be put to the witnesses in the course of the hearings however witnesses are not required to admit the veracity of these documents or their content.
If any core document furnished to a witness requires that witness to furnish a document not annexed to their statement, the Joint Committee will accept same provided its relevance can be established.
The Joint Committee reserves the right to add to the core documents at any time.
All Booklets of Core Documents will be published on the Banking Inquiry website as soon as the Joint Committee deems it appropriate to do so.
The Joint Committee reserves the right to redact any documentation or part thereof or to publish a summary version of any documentation if there are matters contained therein which are not appropriate to publish.
NOTE: In relation to documents if you are submitting same, you are being asked by the draft direction to fill in the Metadata sheet which will be provided to you electronically in due course. Witnesses may submit their statement, accompanying documents and the Metadata sheet by email to biwitnessmanager@oireachtas.ie.
Upon the completion of a witness’s oral evidence and subject to any clarification and/or elaboration requested by the Joint Committee at the hearing, the Joint Committee will not engage in further correspondence and/or accept further material/statements from any witness who has given their evidence.
The Joint Committee will not, unless there are wholly exceptional circumstances, entertain a request from any witness to be recalled to give further oral evidence in order to elaborate or explain, alter or reject any of their previously given evidence.
Similarly the Joint Committee will not engage in further correspondence with or accept further / material statements from persons who in the first instance are only providing a written statement after they have provided that statement.
The above does not affect the rights of any witness under the provisions of the Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Act 2013.
These procedures may, at the discretion of the Joint Committee, be altered, departed from or varied if the Joint Committee is satisfied for good reason, that such alteration, departure or variation is necessary and/or appropriate, including the nature of the matter arising, the urgency of the matter, and with the consent of all or any person affected by the matter, provided always that any such alteration, departure or variation does not contravene the 2013 Act.
These procedures may, in the discretion of the Joint Committee be amended and revised as appropriate, provided always that any such amendment or revision is in compliance with the 2013 Act.
Please note these procedures do not contain and are not intended to represent legal advice. You are referred to the terms of the 2013 Act and the other documentation furnished to you and you may wish to obtain legal advice.
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