Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

— notes that the Government has taken bold and successful action to address funding problems in the Irish financial system through the introduction of the Bank Guarantee Schemes and to remove the riskiest loans from the balance sheets of the participating institutions through the NAMA process, which has the support of the IMF, the OECD, the ECB and the European Commission;

— affirms that the Irish economy needs a functioning banking system that enjoys the trust of depositors, international markets and the community at large in order to benefit from the global economic recovery;

— supports the Government in the measures it is announcing today for the final phase of the stabilisation process of the banking system;

— supports the Government in the actions it is taking to ensure that each participating institution in the NAMA process will meet the Financial Regulator's new capital standards by the end of 2010; and

— supports the Government's structured and measured approach to the issues facing the financial sector in general, which represents the best way to secure its interests and those of the recovering economy while keeping in mind the requirements of the EU."

The country has come a long way since we introduced the State bank guarantee 18 months ago.

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