Wring positive outcome from Anglo disaster

THE acquittal of Anglo’s Sean FitzPatrick may be a massive defeat for the legal system – but if the drive to tackle whitecollar crime gains momentum as a result, then something positive will be wrung from the jaws of defeat.

The fact that the law is unequal to the task of bringing a conviction against Mr FitzPatrick on charges of misleading Anglo’s auditors about millions of euro in loans demonstrates the historical reluctance of the political elite to put whitecollar crime on level pegging with other forms of criminality.

As Gary Murphy argues in today’s paper, a conspiracy of neglect, buoyed by a culture of cronyism operating across different institutions of State, ensured a level of tolerance for corrupt business practice.

Public outrage in the aftermath of the brutal murder of Veronica Guerin was the catalyst for the establishment of the Criminal Assets Bureau, giving gardaí a new weapon to tackle gangland crime.

CAB is still the most significant legacy from that era.

Instead of fulminating rhetoric from politicians and reports from the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement about what went wrong with the trial, which will inevitably gather dust in the office of a public servant, we need firm action from the Government.

Twenty years ago the State poured extra resources and fresh thinking into wiping out drug cartels and criminal gangs – and its efforts have stood the test of time.

We must deploy the same dynamism and fighting spirit to counter white-collar crime, rather than run for cover behind another report.