Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Is it fair to say that there is a strong thread of consistency between how the Governor is approaching the issues of national debt, the mortgage crisis and economic recovery? All of these matters are of interest to the Governor and he outlined in the bank's strategic plan his priorities. In terms of the Governor's approach on the national debt, the common thread is that he is really saying Joe Public must carry the can, fully and completely, there will be no write-down and there may be a little restructuring. When it comes to mortgage debt, the Governor states Joe Public must carry the can 100%, there will be no write-down and there may be a little restructuring, and in terms of the economic crisis that has resulted from all of that, Joe Public must carry the whole can. What unites his policy and perspective is the priority of protecting private financial institutions. That is the thread that runs through it all - Joe Public carries the can and the private financial institutions get protected. The best the Governor was offering is a little bit of tweaking in restructuring where that suffocating burden and price for an economic crisis caused by others will be strung out over a longer period.

This is essentially what Professor Honohan is telling us.