We paid millions to bondholders to advise us not to burn bondholders!

Parliamentary Question reveals Minster for Finance paid 6.2 million to bond traders Rothschild for advice on banking crisis

In a statement today Richard Boyd Barrett TD has expressed disbelief and outrage on receipt of an answer to a parliamentary question relating to outsourcing in government departments and the public sector generally.

An answer to a parliamentary questions revealed that in 2010 the NTMA paid put €6.2 million to bond traders and wealth managers Rothschild for advice to the Minister for Finance on how to deal with the banking crisis.

Deputy Boyd Barrett pointed out that this means that on the absolutely most important issue facing Ireland in terms of an unprecedented economic crisis and whether or not to pay off senior bondholders, the Irish government actually paid bondholders to advise them on what to do.

It is hardly surprising the representatives of bondholders advised the government to prioritise bondholders with devastating consequences for the country and for Ireland's economic future.

This raises the question of how long have we been taking advice from these private corporate interests and are we still.

It also raises questions about conflicts of interest when the state is taking advice from private interests with a stake in government decisions.

Were we, for example, taking advice from the Rothschild Group or other similar companies at the beginning of the crisis in 2008 and at the time the blanket bank guarantee was established?

It opens the door to corruption in public decision making when senior public officials are taking decisions that affect the public interest on advice from private sector golden circles. These senior public officials often end up working for these same private interests when they leave office.

Bertie Ahern was Taoiseach, making vital decisions on matters affecting the public interest and is now in the employ of a subsidiary of Helvetica Wealth, an asset management agency based in Switzerland.

Golden circles don't just operate at a national level but are tied to an international circle of bond traders and wealth asset managers who represent the interests of multi-billionaires. In this context is it any wonder then that the state has made the decision to ransom the country for bondholders.

In a statement today Richard Boyd Barrett TD said, "it is just outrageous that we have been taking financial advice from bondholders when we know the vicious austerity being inflicted on ordinary people is because of a decision to pay the bondholders. The bondholders are hardly likely to tell the government to burn the bondholders".

"It beggars belief that a government could be handing out 6.2million to an obscenely wealthy asset management group while at the same time planning to impose a charge of 100 on pensioners, the disabled and low income families in the form of the household charge and cutting the income of lone parents"
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