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User:fredkenneallyDate:29/05/2009Time:22:58:14Edition:30/05/2009ExaminerLiveXX3005Page:1Color:

XX1 - V1

THE MAN bEHiNd THE ObAMA lOOk
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Saturday, May 30, 2009

kEANE ON TArgET As irElANd HEld
Sport: 25
No. 58,119 e1.80 / Stg £1.10

www.irishexaminer.com

Taxpayer facing 7.5bn Anglo bailout
■ Institution posts worst losses by a bank in history of the state
by Brian O’Mahony Chief Business Correspondent THE Government could be forced to
pump up to 7.5 billion of taxpayer money into Anglo Irish Bank after the troubled
institution posted the worst losses by a bank in the history of the state. Anglo
is to receive a massive 4bn cash injection after it reported losses of 4.1bn for
the six months to the end of March. The loss is made up totally of bad debt write-offs
which have wiped out the bank’s balance sheet overnight. The bank said it expects
to have to write off 7.5bn over three years to 2011 as loans to its elite clientele
of property developers continue to go sour. If land and property values continue
to deteriorate, total bad debts could rise by a further 3.5bn resulting in total
writedowns of 11bn. The Government has already agreed to recapitalise AIB and Bank
of Ireland to the tune of 7 billion. Bank of Ireland said its bad debts will total
6bn over the next three years while AIB said it will double its charge to 4.3bn.
Due to the major losses the Financial Regulator has waived the need for Anglo to
comply with the current regulation on capital requirements. The bank is to buy back
outstanding bonds that will generate some income that will be used to boost its virtually
non-existent reserves. Finance Minister Brian Lenihan described what had gone on
in the bank as a “disgrace” and said he understood why many people wanted to
see the bank wound up. He described the 4.1bn first-half loss by the bank as “extremely
disappointing”. Before any money is injected work on a strategic plan has to be
carried out to “de-risk this bank as a threat to the Irish banking system”, he
said. To allow the bank to fail would leave the state liable for 64bn under the state
guarantee scheme, he said. Top executives at Anglo resigned after a multibillion-euro
loans fiasco was revealed in December. Garda fraud officers later raided the head
offices and the lender is being investigated by white-collar crime watchdogs. The
Director of Corporate Enforcement said his investigation into events at Anglo was
complex but was proceeding well. Paul Appleby, launching his 2008 annual report,
said: “The investigation is progressing satisfactorily, and the office continues
to work constructively with the bank, the Financial Regulator and other relevant
parties in this matter.” Fine Gael’s finance spokesman Richard Bruton said the
Government should think long and hard before committing the equivalent of 2,500 from
every family into the “floundering” bank. Labour’s finance spokeswoman Joan
Burton said the public’s worst fears had been realised with the disclosure of the
massive losses.
EDITORIAL: 16 BUSINESS: 18

PAT’S LATE LATE ERA TERMINATED Mother fears son’s death over lack of addicition
aid
by Jennifer Hough A MOTHER has claimed her 16-year-old son, who has serious drug
and alcohol problems, will be “found dead on the street” because there are no
services to help him. A political controversy erupted over the same boy last year
after he ended up sleeping in Mallow Garda Station because officers were unable to
contact Health Service Executive (HSE) social workers out of hours. Now, according
to his mother, social workers are telling her there is “nothing they can do”
and that her son, who has been classified as “at risk”, will have to wait at
least six months for a bed in rehab. “My son is 16 and he is a drug addict and
an alcoholic. The problem is social services are not doing anything to help him.
“The guards are picking him up all the time but there is only so much they can
do, the problem is his addiction — he needs help,” she said. “Everyone who
knows his case says he is at risk and is going to be found dead, but they keep telling
me there is nothing they can do.” The boy’s mother said she is being told that
there is nowhere to put him. The boy was picked up by gardaí on Thursday night and
brought to hospital and from there “disappeared”, his mother said. “He desperately
wants help. Social workers say he needs to help himself, but he hasn’t got the
sense to help himself.” Living near Fermoy with his mother, he “takes off and
could be missing for days”. “He has a major problem, cannot go a day without
drink or drugs. I have been told they are going for an order which will allow them
to put him into a secure unit, but that is going to take six months.” She said
it was possible to get immediate treatment in Britain, but the HSE was not willing
to fund it. “He cannot wait. I am not the only parent in this situation. I can’t
understand why they will not do anything outside of office hours.” A senior Garda
source confirmed the situation. “I am aware of the mother’s concerns and I have
sympathy with them. The HSE is actively involved in this case, and has processes
to go through. We are working to try and come up with a solution.” Sergeant Willie
Gleeson of the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors said it was left to
gardaí to pick up the slack when social workers were not working. He said it was
“amazing” that on a bank holiday weekend the HSE provided an out-of-hours contact
point between 10am and 4pm but that it did not see fit to have one on a regular weekend.
“They are either obliged to provide an out-of-hours service or they are not,”
he said. In a statement responding to the claims, a HSE spokesperson said while a
six-week drug and alcohol treatment programme is offered to vulnerable young people,
“it is very disappointing when a young person self-discharges prior to completing
the programme”. “Those who complete the programme, and their parents, are offered
a further two-year aftercare programme, including weekly group meetings in Cork,”
the spokesperson said, adding that an emergency after-hours foster care service is
also available to families “confronted with challenging circumstances”.

The Edge, Pat Kenny, Bono and U2 manager Paul McGuinness on the Late Late Show last
night. Pat was given a Gibson guitar and a replica of Bono’s shades as he bowed
out as host of the world’s longest running TV chat show. Picture: Courtesy of RTÉ
by Fiachra Ó Cionnaith HE said there was a Terminator vibe to the evening but, for
Pat Kenny, there is no chance of saying I’ll be back. Last night the successor
to Gay Byrne said his final farewell to the coveted Friday slot, handing over the
hot-seat as presenter of the world’s longest running chat show to RTÉ rival Ryan
Tubridy. Amidst a cluster of national and international Irish stars like actor Gabriel
Byrne, U2, Pat Shortt, Imelda May and Louis Walsh, the sometimes loved, often loathed
public face of the Late Late seemed relaxed in the knowledge he was leaving. After
a minute-long, seemingly unprompted, applause from the audience he initially joked
that “if you guys keep this up I might just change my mind, and there’ll be one
disappointed neighbour of mine in Dalkey”. But the mood was clear when U2 presented
him with a Gibson guitar — one of only 300 in the world — and replicas of Bono’s
infamous shades. “You’re getting a Terminator vibe off that,” said the U2 frontman.
“Well I’m being terminated tonight,” responded Pat. Unlike his predecessor
Gay Byrne there was no opportunity to ride off on a Harley Davidson, with a celebratory
cake having to suffice. Pat said it was “business as usual” last night, but the
evening was still filled with memories including a five-minute archive of his time
on the Late Late from Joe Duffy. “Can I just say thanks for what you’ve done,”
said Gabriel Byrne. Unlike Gay Byrne’s departure however, last night did not feel
like the end of an era, but the passing of a torch to another presenter who will
attempt to live up to the standards of the show’s first host.

FF faces losing Euro seat in Dublin
by Paul O’Brien Political Correspondent

NEWS Full bloom
AN “Honest 2 Goodness” small garden is one of the most popular exhibits at Bloom,
which continued in glorious sunshine at the Phoenix Park in Dublin. Page: 7

Abuse research
MORE research into the field of institutional childhood abuse and suicidal behaviour
should be prioritised in the wake of the Ryan Report, according to suicide researcher
Dr Ella Arensman. Page: 6

FIANNA Fáil is at real risk of losing its European Parliament seat in Dublin in
what would be a devastating personal blow to Taoiseach Brian Cowen. With the party
set for heavy losses in the local elections, Mr Cowen needs to retain all of FF’s
four seats in Europe to fend off questions about his leadership. But a new poll shows
FF MEP Eoin Ryan in serious danger of losing his seat in Dublin, having slipped two
points to just 9% since the last poll two weeks ago. By contrast, Fine Gael (FG)
MEP Gay Mitchell is set to be comfortably

re-elected, having seen his support rise two points to 28%, as is Labour MEP Proinsias
de Rossa, who is up four to 25%. Sinn Féin MEP Mary Lou McDonald has slipped three
to 11%, but remains the front-runner for the third and final seat in the constituency.
She is set to benefit from left-wing transfers from Socialist Party candidate Joe
Higgins, who is polling strongly at 9%, up two. FF should hold its seats in the other
three constituencies, however, according to the TNS MRBI/Irish Times poll. And Mr
Cowen insisted yesterday he would continue in office no matter what the outcome of
next Friday’s elections.

In Ireland South, party MEP Brian Crowley is set to comfortably top the poll, having
seen his support rise three points to 30%. He will be followed by FG’s Sean Kelly,
down one to 16%. The third and final seat will be a tightly fought contest between
Independent MEP Kathy Sinnot, up two to 14%; Labour candidate Alan Kelly, down one
to 12%; FG MEP Colm Burke, unchanged at 10%; and Sinn Féin’s Toireasa Ferris,
down two to 10%. In Ireland North West, FF’s Pat 'the Cope' Gallagher is set to
retain the seat vacated by the party’s outgoing MEP Seán Ó Neachtain, having
seen his support

rise one point to 20%. Independent MEP Marian Harkin will also retain her seat, having
also gone up one point to 19%, as should FG MEP Jim Higgins, even though he is down
three points to 17%. Libertas founder Declan Ganley is unchanged at 9%. In Ireland
East, FG MEP Máiréad McGuinness will top the poll, although she is down four to
29%. FF MEP Liam Aylward is up one to 20%, and should also retain his seat. But the
real story in this constituency is the performance of Nessa Childers, who has gone
up four points to 21% and is set to win a seat for Labour.
ELECTIONS: 10-12

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