Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will try to be as brief as possible as I know the Tánaiste's time is valuable. As Deputy Durkan said, the Tánaiste mentioned in his speech that President Van Rompuy is pursuing the banking union project with real urgency. We have always said there is a serious need for decent regulation of the banking sector. Does the Tánaiste think the proposals made by President Barroso in his state of the Union address last week will be sufficient and will include enough democratic accountability? Is it possible the Government will support banking union but not political union?

I would like to refer to four of the proposals. It has been suggested there should be a single book of rules to govern the eurozone banks, that the European Central Bank should have the power to monitor all eurozone banks and have oversight in the wider EU, that a resolution regime should be established to enable troubled banks to be closed, and that there should be a fully fledged scheme to protect citizens' deposits across the eurozone. Does the Tánaiste believe any of these four proposals should be a cause for concern for the Irish people and for the Government? In that context, how does he envisage the next period will evolve in terms of any treaty changes that might be deemed necessary?

As part of the June agreement, a bank deal was supposed to be agreed next month. Chancellor Merkel's comment that no change is envisaged in respect of bank debt relief for Ireland was quoted on the floor of the Dáil yesterday. Can the Tánaiste comment on that? The Taoiseach said in the Dáil: "The important point is that the conclusion must involve the right and best deal for Ireland's economy and people." What would be an acceptable deal for Ireland, in the Tánaiste's opinion? Chancellor Merkel has said there will be no change in respect of bank debt relief. If an interest rate of 2.5% is charged over 40 years, we will pay €1 billion. Does the Tánaiste think that is acceptable?

In June, the European Parliament adopted a resolution relating to so-called own resources. The proposals to introduce a financial transactions tax and an EU VAT rate would allow the Union to increase its own resources. Can the Tánaiste reiterate Ireland's position on the possibility of a financial transactions tax being introduced? What is the Government's position on own resources and future funding? What is acceptable or unacceptable in that context? What would be the Government's preferred option?