AIB 'A Cess-Pit' Says Gilmore

The Labour parties leader has called the AIB bank a "financial cess-pit".

Eamon Gilmore's comments come as it emerged some senior staff at the bank have impaired loans to the bank.

The disclosure was made during a presentation to the Oireachtas Committee on Finance and Public Service by the bank's chairman, Donal O'Connor.

He refused however to disclose the extent of the impaired loans, which loans staff will find difficult to pay back due to falling wages and redundancies.

The Anglo Irish Bank has also asked the government to provide a €4 billion bailout to cover its own toxic debts, with another €3.5 billion request looming.

Calling the bank a financial cess-pit Eamon said: "We have already heard about the extent to which the bank gave loans to its own directors, gave loans to other people to buy shares in the same bank, arranged back to back loans with another financial institution to make its financial position look healthy when it was anything but.

"This bank is owned by the State the Government is responsible for it, how much was loaned to owed by the senior managerial staff, how many senior staff were involved and are they still in place and what were the loans for."

Speaking during Leader's questions, Mr Gilmore added in his address to Taoiseach Brian Cowen that the day the Government made the decision to put €4billion was the same day that every monthly paid employee in had their pay packet raided with levies and health levies.

On Wednesday, it was also announced that Former Bank of Ireland chief executive Pat Molloy is to become the new chairman of the bank.

Mr Molloy is to fill the position which will be left vacant by Richard Burrows when he stands down next month. Bank of Ireland is to meet with Finance Minister Brian Lenihan today. The lender is now 25% owned by the National Pensions Reserve Fund on behalf of the State.

(DW/JM)