One thing is for sure – the scrappy Paddy McKillen is not happy. A statement has been issued on his behalf this afternoon which is reproduced below in full, but it deals with two distinct matters.
Last Sunday, the Sunday Times reported the temporary injunction that Paddy, along with controversial businessman Denis O’Brien, won at the High Court the day before. The injunction was granted in part because of the leaking of information to which Paddy has a right to confidentiality. It seems that certain confidential documents at Irish Bank Resolution Corporation were leaked, and the Sunday Times was about to run a story which the Judge believed could irrevocably damage Paddy. Paddy has now gone to the Gardai and good luck to him with that, they’re still examining the Moriarty Tribunal report with the Director of Public Prosecutions to see if they should launch a full investigation, and they’ve had that report for more than two years!
The second matter is the subject of the reporting in the Sunday Times and Sunday Independent today, and the Freedom of Information request which revealed the Department of Finance had been courteous to the Barclay brothers in their communication with IBRC in respect of Paddy’s loans. Paddy claims there to have been a “surprising degree of cooperation” between the Department of Finance and the Barclays, and I would agree it was “surprising” that the Department of Finance could deal with communications promptly, knowledgeably and courteously, but I don’t think that’s what Paddy means!
Here’s the statement verbatim:
Leaking of Confidential IBRC Documents
Urgent investigations are currently being conducted in order to determine the source of the improper and possibly unlawful release of selective confidential communications relating to Paddy McKillen. Taken out of context, this information could be seriously misleading.
Mr McKillen has lodged a formal complaint with the Gardai and has instructed his lawyer, Paul Tweed, to take all appropriate legal action to identify the source of and reasons behind this extraordinary state of affairs, which may have ramifications for other customers of banking institutions. He will also be seeking the assistance of the Data Protection Commissioner and the Financial Services Ombudsman.
Department of Finance FOI
Mr McKillen is also demanding a full explanation from the Department of Finance regarding what appear to be informal, supportive communications between the Department and Richard Faber, a Director of Ellerman Investments Limited, a company controlled by the Barclay Brothers. This documentation has only recently come to light following an Application under the Freedom of Information Act, and suggests a surprising level of co-operation between the Government and English competitors of Mr McKillen. This relationship is in stark contrast to the hostile stance taken against Mr McKillen, an Irish citizen who has created numerous jobs and paid significant sums in taxes, together with other extensive contributions to the Irish economy.
Mr McKillen believes he is entitled to, and is seeking, full and complete disclosure of all communications of this nature.
Cry me a river Paddy,pay off what you borrowed in full…get on with your jet setting international life.Why would anyone lend vast sums to a homeless man,of no fixed abode:)
If that’s not an option,then disclose where you reside….it’s probably fair to assume you organize/arrange your extremely complex tax affairs to minimize the bite-as is your right.
“Under cross-examination, Mr McKillen was unable to say where he was domiciled in 2009 and 2010.
He told the court he travelled extensively in Asia and elsewhere and that his family had been based in California.
He said he was not sure where he was resident at that time.
When asked by Mr Justice David Richards where he called home, Mr McKillen repeated that he had been travelling a lot, but agreed that he spent more time in London than in Dublin.”
http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0320/314886-mckillenp/
@john – looks like you’re the one who’s crying alright. You’d want to watch that begrudgery – it’s not good for you. Fair dues to Paddy and I wish him well. As I said before he’s a significant contributor to the Irish economy and the least he can expect is fair procedures. I’d love to see him beat the Barclays and I bet I’m not the only one.
@Sam not in the slightest,as a little aside was refused entry to The Ritz for afternoon tea over Easter…must have been my accent.Actually,in fairness one th kids had his “kicks” on,high end trainers I think you guys call them…but yep refused entry,oh we just walked to Fortnum and Mason..very welcoming.
Paddy has much love and support from Finna Fail,in fact the party went an issued a statement today supporting international man of mystety Paddy…..
Come on Sam,the chap owes hundreds of millions to the Irish taxpayer,yet takes the 5th on where he resides…why the cloak and dagger sh*t..or is it possible hes that stupid and hasno idea where he lives,has happened to me after going on the lash…but then Paddy must be the only teetotaler to own a vineyard…weirder and weirder.
http://www.fiannafail.ie/news/entry/9695/
Recently AIB outsourced a major contract to an Indian company called HCL. HCL have no presence in Ireland, never employed anyone in Ireland and never paid tax in Ireland. And AIB just pass business that could have been done inIreland on to them. My point is we have a lot of rhetoric from politicians about gatherings etc but how about supporting our own. I don’t know the ins and outs of McKillen case but he is reported to have been keeping his loans in order, he pays taxes in ireland and he employs a lot of people so how about for a change we support people and protect them so that they continue to contribute to our economy.
@John – looks like a perfectly sensible and intelligent statement there from Fianna Fail. I’m impressed with it. Most people will want to hear the answers to those questions. I don’t wish to offend you but I think your comments about Paddy are offensive and ridculous. Maybe you were dazzled by the Ritz, if you were I hope it wears off soon because I usually enjoy reading your comments on this blog. I could just ignore you this evening. I have much better things to do but I think you are so waayy off the mark that I had to comment back.
Seriously though it is very shortsighted for anyone to believe that selling out to the Barclays is in the best interests of the Irish economy.
@Sam we have had this exchange before,lets agree to disagree.
I fail to get why anyone cares who owns the loans,maximum recovery for Irish taxpayer should be primary goal.
If his Irish business interests are profitable and well run,what’s the issue ?
Dazzled by the Ritz…I was refused service !
Agreed,was great of FF to come out swinging and issue a statement of support,fair play to then….eh hold on was Paddy not a significant donor again,probably just a coincidence :)
“Nama ‘names’ Paddy McKillen and Gerry Gannon were donors to the party — both were also named as part of the Anglo golden circle. ”
http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/for-politics-sake-may-the-giving-hand-never-falter-26645872.html
@ J. Gallagher.
I too am a bit surprised at your comment John.
Residence can be a complex issue when it comes to taxation, terms such as..
Resident, non resident, ordinarily resident, non ordinarily resident, domiciled, non domiciled and recently I heard another one…. habitually resident or non habitually resident, however I don’t believe the word habitual is used in tax law.
As one gets older it can become confusing to remember which term or combination of terms apply to one’s particular case i.e.
I am domiciled in ROI, I am resident, but I am also non ordinarly resident in ROI. Or I am domiciled in ROI, but I am non resident and non ordinarly resident. Or I am non domiciled in ROI, but I can elect to become resident for this tax year even though I am not resident or ordinarily resident.
Where’s Niall… I am sure he can explain it better?
@Sporthog,Hi Sporthog have not heard from Niall in a while,yes with multiple residences and international business interests,must be somewhat overwhelming to know where one resides,but given his claim about paying Irish taxes it’s a bit disegenous not to know.
Paddy, is a big boy well able look after himself,the twins are Scottish…the whole English V International Irish Born Trophy Collector,vineyard,art,hotels,is ludicrous,the refuge of the desperate.
@John, So what if he owes hundreds of millions to nationalised and soon to be liquidated IBRC, there’s no crime in borrowing money from banks. As far as I’m aware his loans are fully performing. I for one wish Paddy all the best in his endeavours.
@Darren,the performance of his loans or otherwise has been subject to lots of speculation,depends what metric you utilize.
It would appear the historically low interest rates prevailing may be allowing the loans to get minimally serviced-again speculation-but how about loan to value,maturity dates,debt service coverage,covenant strength.
Given the precipitous fall in RE it’s a bit of a strength by you to assert w/o a link that “his loans are fully performing” …..if they so fab why has he not refinaced,would some other bank given the absolute quality never mind the quantity not want them for their balance sheet ?
I also wish Paddy well and some day would love visit his organic vineyard,world class art collection in Ireland…sorry the eh south france.
Agree @John Gallaher is in negative form of late. More like the kind of blogger you find on other Irish websites, but with better spelling skills and more friends. No doubt he’s better looking too!
@Gayle,Hi Gayle not at all….my spelling is still awful,the vocabulary has expanded slightly due to words with friends….its said i have a certain je ne sais quoi,but its an acquired taste….not for everyone!
All best,I understand no big day out tomorrow…oh well,there will be plenty more.
I think you’re mixing him up with me, Gayle.
Jaesus John, you’re a lucky boyo to have been refused entry in the Ritz, the’re killing off ex-PM and everything in there!
@JR the place was packed too…..instead leaving quitly naturally I kicked up a bit of a fuss!
Hard to disagree with the attached…
http://www.num.org.uk/page/News-NUMNews/moreinfo/2117
@JG, interesting that you were thrown out by the Barclay brothers, John. As owners of the Ritz these two had been providing accommodation (presumably with their well known charitable generosity a la their other friend Derrik) to Maggie Thatcher for quite a while. Whatever about her economic policies and views on Europe which I find hard to disagree with, she has a lot to answer for when she meets St Peter in relation to 2,000 young Argentinean cadets.
We hear a lot of spin recently about “recovering funds for the taxpayer”. It’s the new mantra to excuse official actions that at times are pushing the borders of legality.
But Paddy McKillen did not borrow from the taxpayers. He borrowed from a commercial bank. It was a private arrangement between two business entities with no public involvement until, as in Cyprus, the politicians got busy. However, unlike most, Paddy is paying off his borrowings in full. What he does after that is his own business, but at least he hasn’t been giving a war criminal free room and board.
@WSTT i was not wrestled to the ground and throw out…not at this joint!
Was intercepted en route by some very polite people,explained that one the kids was not attired in accordance with the dress code-sneakers-refused service!
The better half was NOT amused and took it up with management…….no better woman :)
Stop with the trips down memory lane WSTT,ANGLO was a sh*t show,they were out of control,the lunatics had taken over the asylum.
Re-finace,utilize some cash reserves pay it off….simple really.
Ah no the ‘Blessed St. Maggie’ will be running the show up there already (she’ll soon get bored cause none of her friends are up there) Perhaps St Francis will point to her the logic of not using North Sea Oil Revenues wisely, merely letting them hang around to pay miners dole strengthened the £ (at the same time as letting ‘loads-a-money’ loose) and made UK manufacturing uncompetitive for a decade.
@JG, Many fond memories, John…. but they never invited me to breakfast! The point I was making was in relation to Paddy – he is paying off 100% of his loans. What beef have the taxpayers with him?
There will be a few Anglo (IBRC) borrowers with plenty of beef with the liquidator very shortly though when he packages and sells all sub €10 million off to the likes of LoneStar with no reference to them whatsoever. Its going to be interesting to see the different sales methodologies in operation (NAMA’s and KPMG’s) over the next few months. If KPMG is more successful, NAMA’s days are numbered. I might even miss them…. I’ll have no-one to bitch about.
@WSTT-bit of a bad day for KPMG………..totally agree regarding Paddy,and fair play to him if he does pay off the money he owes in full……eh hold on is that how it works-you pay back money you borrower :)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/apr/09/kpmg-quits-auditors-herbalife-skechers
@JR had the greatest pleasure of attending a Billy Bragg concert in 1990 when Maggie resigned,its was Midnight at the Olympia in Dublin,brillant evening……apols to NWL for the video !
WSTT—The taxpayers are actually rooting for Paddy McKillen. It is the ones who are going bankrupt to avoid their “gambling debts” we have a problem with.
@CC, I am sure that he will be pleased to hear that. It’s not the impression one gets from reading the papers.
@CC, BTW, Have you any suggestions how those going bankrupt might pay their “gambling debts”, seeing that most of them are in the tens, if not hundreds, of millions?
I think the taxpayer is rooting for McKillen also. Afterall we all benefit if he keeps his business and most people understand that. Pity the Government, Department of Finance and NAMA are so blinkered and set on getting him back that they cannot see that the bottom line is that the the policy they have pursued for dealing with McKillen since they illegally made a decision to acquire his valuable loan portfolio, before NAMA was even legitimately established, is very flawed.
I was a bit taken aback by Cantillon in the Irish Times yesterday and would feel much happier knowing the Irish Times was there as a watchdog to make sure that the State, with its unprecedented authoritarian powers granted by legislation enacted because of the financial crisis, is using those powers wisely.
Instead it looked like the Irish Times was the newsletter of the Civil Service.
I want an Ireland that can foster and encourage people who have businesses that benefit the economy and pay their loans. Why would we want to destroy wealth and business that can only help our economy and banks recover.
The treatment of McKillen by NAMA and now the Department of Finance has been consistent since 2010. It all follows one path and the bottom line is that the public interest is not served well by this case. You would wonder what is behind it and who benefits – the only ones I can identify are the Barclays and of course Derek Quinlan.
Why is the state refusing to hear him? Is it power, vengence, lack or intelligence or even corruption or maybe all four are in the mix. But anyone who thinks that the state is making the right decisions in the interests of the public on this one is very short-sighted.
I remember reading the points made by Joseph Stiglitz when he acted as an expert witness for McKillen in his Irish bid to stop NAMA acquiring his loans. Much of what he predicted might happen has happened.
@namawinelake do you still have that document available, I remember reading it here at the time and it was very impressive.
@Sam, the statement by Nobel economics laureate, Joseph Stiglitz in the Paddy McKillen (Dellway) v NAMA Dublin High Court case is here
I must say that there is nothing I have seen in the Sunday Times/Sindo coverage of the FoI last Sunday which indicated malfeasance or shenanigans on the part of the Department of Finance.
Noonan and Moran have Draconian powers at their disposal. The contents of the email I read was questionable at the very least. McKillen’s FOI request was only part-granted and we don’t know what is in the documents that were refused. The head of the Department of Finance was communicating directly and offering support to McKillen’s competitors after a high profile legal battle had started in the UK. Why did he chose to do that. Does he usually answer emails directly in such an informal and helpful way to someone he does not know who is trying to gain advantage and take-over an Irish owned business. McKillen is paying his loans. McKillen’s loans are fully-performing and not gambling debts as CC pointed out above.
We should be suspicious of Moran’s behaviour until we know otherwise. He is afterall a poacher turned gamekeeper and was a surprise appointment to the position. I would expect the media to be able to investigate this until the truth is revealed rather than brush it off as a storm in a teacup and not important. Throw in the leaking of IBRC documents to the Sunday Times and I think there is reason for suspicon. There is a lot of money at stake here. I would not brush off McKillen’s claims and what has been revealed so lightly. I expect more from the State and hope the media are open-minded when investigating something that is very much in the public interest.
@SamOB, the one thing that is guaranteed is that there will be very close scrutiny of what happens now with Paddy McKillen’s loans at IBRC – reportedly €300-370m personal loans and circa €550m corporate loans and both the special liquidator and the Department of Finance will need to be utterly scrupulous in how they are handled against the standard of maximising returns for the creditors of IBRC (almost entirely the Irish state).
If Paddy refinances his loans, including interest and other fees contractually payable, out at 100% then great and well done to him, he is a talented businessman and should be wished well, repaying property-based loans is not easy as we all know.
But if Paddy is unable to refinance his loans 100%, and they then come on to the market, they should be sold to the highest bidder and if that is the Barclay brothers, so be it. And John Moran and the Department of Finance and the Special Liquidator will be closely watched to ensure they do the job they’re supposed to do, un-interfered with from whatever quarter.
And John Moran didn’t offer “support” to the Barclays. As far as I can tell from what has been revealed so far, he dealt with communication by a representative of the Barclays courteously, promptly and given their deep pockets, knowledgeably. Richard Faber said something to the effect of “thank you for your support” but that was not the term used by John Moran. This reminds me of those prospective politicians that turn up on your doorstep and just because you open the door, smile at them and nod politely doesn’t justify their parting farewell “thanks for your support”.
Could be that McKillen is being tarred by his association with Denis O’Brien in the mind of the Joe Public.
@JG Peter O’Toole used to hang out in the Ritz in pyjamas and slippers. Where was their dress code then? And no doubt if Maggie had come down to the lobby in her nightie, they would have rustled up a sherry for her.
@Ella he appears to have some sort of napoleonic complex,other borrowers have quietly,calmly paid off what they owed and got on with it,Durkans one example.
Would not mind only I was very thirsty,had endured a few hours at The Tower,was desperate for a pint…so getting refused afternoon tea was a relief as im not sure they serve pints….
Ella,re SD its a guard with little hut,barrier that gets raised after you sign in.The guard is just a rent a cop but its a private property…..there a few photos knocking around-Belle Haven is name of community.Big gates are oh so “jersey” or god help us suburban not a good look in leafy sunny greenwich,white picket fences where social climbing is the main sport.
Here’s a pic John, no sign of rent-a-cop. Unlikely they do donuts in Greenwich so maybe he’s gone for pain au chocolat :)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1336211/Sean-Dunne-lives-8m-US-mansion-wife-builds-door.html
there is a guard before you enter into the community-some confusion over his actual location and address……
“MEAD POINT-PRIVATE WATERFRONT COMMUNITY, 24/7 GUARD-GATED ASSOC”
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/526-Indian-Field-Rd-Greenwich-CT-06830/59301032_zpid/
Here is a pic of the guard post :)
http://www.trulia.com/property/1063600891-Single-Family-Home-Greenwich-CT-06830#photo-6
WSTT Did the bankrupt ask the young people who have lost their job and /or home how they could solve their problem?. Did they care about the people who lost their money in the bust banks/ Will they share with the taxpayer the money they have .squirelled away( to pay the levies imposed on them as a result of the “downturn “?) When they made profit they used every accountancy trick to evade or avoid paying taxes. Yet now they seem to think they should be bailed out by the people who paid their way and lived within their means. I know you feel the banks are to blame also, and I agree with you on that, but do not expect respect or sympathy from the taxpayers of this country.
@CC. (a) I’m not bankrupt. (b) I neither want nor need anyone’s sympathy. (c) I did not lay any debts I might have on to the taxpayer. Unlike Sean Dunne – I apologize for nothing.
You’re in NAMA
If I misunderstood your question of 2.11p.m. I apologise mea culpa
@CC, Thank you, but there is no need at all for an apology. I value your opinions and I enjoy the cut and thrust of the debate on here…believe me I’m really quite thick skinned :-)
I was going to respond in some detail to your queries, but the computer crashed twice just as I was finishing it, and I thought that it might be an omen – so we will leave it for another day :-)
Suffice to say that I have a great feeling of pity for anyone who has to take the bankruptcy route. It is not a decision made or executed lightly. It leaves a stigma, no matter what anyone says. And in Ireland that stigma ensures that there will be no second chances. That’s one of the reasons why people leave.
@DJ, ….. and your point is?
@WSTT and DJ you guys would actually get along,I enjoy WSTT’s posts a lot he/she is always polite and very witty some times….also quite a nice turn of phrase.
DJ if he/she is NAMA’d even better to get some inside skinny,after meeting Anglo I ahem decclined,that lovely opportunity of ever doing business as I don’t suffer fools easily:)
They were late to the party we were sellers they were considered “hot” money,and most people in NY assumed it would end in years,Hypo also….