The Newsletter continues, November 19, with the PMS saga, reporting that details of any potential legal contest between Presbyterian Mutual Society directors and the department of enterprise, trade and investment (DETI) could remain under wraps for years, it has emerged.
The £300 million mutual suffered a run in late 2008 and went into administration, leaving some 9,500 savers without access to their money.
Last month the chancellor accepted there had been a "terrible" regulatory failure.
On Wednesday, DETI said it was seeking to disqualify six out of 20 PMS directors due to their alleged part in the crisis.
But yesterday “an informed source” told the News Letter that the details of any legal proceedings could remain private for years.
"If none of the six contest the DETI action it could all be completed within 12 weeks and the outcome made public then," he said.
"But if any of them decide to contest the charges it could take a year or even more than two.
"In that case, DETI has the power to proceed within a private investigation which is all behind closed doors. This is quite possible. The names of those being investigated would then not even be made public until the end. If that happens then you would expect all the details – a full report with minutes and evidence – to be published after a year or two, reaching several hundred words.
"If only some of the directors plead guilty it could be that DETI decides not to conclude their cases until those contesting have been dealt with also. So it is possible that none of the names of the six accused, the cases against them and the outcome of the proceedings may be published for several years."
Although all six accused directors have a presumption of innocence, in such cases it is theoretically possible that criminal charges can follow after disqualifcation proceedings end, he added.
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