Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has said Irish Nationwide Building Society has all the necessary Government support it needs to carry out its business.
A report in this morning's Irish Times said the society's former chairman Dr Michael Walsh believed Irish Nationwide could not survive without significant Government support and reorganisation. Dr Walsh resigned on Tuesday evening.
In a statement this evening, Minister Lenihan said Dr Walsh had told him his reference to Government support was a reference to the importance of the Government's bank guarantee scheme introduced in September.
'The Minister wishes to state in the strongest possible terms that Irish Nationwide Building Society has all the necessary Government support it needs to conduct its business,' the minister said.
He added that the Irish Nationwide board had told him it had made 'significant progress' in strengthening its management and organisation, in line with its business plan given to the Department of Finance under the guarantee scheme.
