The Governor of the Central Bank says the behaviour in the Anglo tapes is outrageous but it did not shed any new light on the ongoing investigation.
Patrick Honohan has been answering questions at the Oireachtas Finance Committee about the decision by the Central Bank to drop an investigation into the Anglo tapes.
The Central Bank put out a statement yesterday saying it found there was nothing new in the recordings to warrant a criminal complaint and they did not forward the matter to the Gardai or the Director of Corporate Enforcement.
" No new issues have been identified that relate to suspected criminal offences having occurred and as a result, the Central Bank does not intend, and is not required, to make any further statutory reports of suspected criminal offences to An Garda Síochána or the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement in relation to this matter" it said.
The tapes - published by independent newspapers - raised concerns that Anglo may have misrepresented its financial position when it sought Central Bank support in 2008. Patrick Honohan He says they reviewed the tapes and found no new evidence of criminality.
The Governor also says the banks are engaging in wishful thinking that arrears cases will sort themselves out.
Patrick Honohan is appearing before the Oireachtas Finance Committee where he has been giving details on how lenders are meeting targets to help distressed mortgage holders.
He says the banks themselves are responsible for their own operations and not the Central Bank. And he says the banks have got to come up with real solutions for the country's 100,000 mortgage holders in arrears.
