Professor Patrick Honohan:

Well, I think, first of all, the ECB definitely wanted a bailout. I think that they ... they were ... I'm looking for the word ... well, they were unwise in the statements they made, formally and behind close doors, to the market. First of all, I'll give you an example: on 2 September ... 2 September Jean-Claude Trichet was asked at the press conference, "What about Anglo Irish Bank, blah, blah, blah, blah?" He said, and I brought the quote along with me, it's quite extraordinary ... he said, when everybody knew that Anglo Irish Bank had ... was heavily into ELA and that nobody ... the Irish Government couldn't afford to pay for that, he said "It is clear that that bank is matter for the Irish Government." Yes, there you are, "Do you not share ... [questioner] Do you not share any of the concern that there is in Dublin that the cost of bailing out this specific bank [the reference is to Anglo Irish Bank] is creating an intolerable burden on the Irish state?" Jean-Claude Trichet:

I already responded on this. If I am not mistaken, it is a bank which is owned by the government. So it is the responsibility of the government of Ireland and of the Irish authorities in general to take the appropriate decisions.

Immediately that was taken that, "Oh, okay, so the ELA for Anglo isn't for ever, the Irish Government are going to have to do something about it." I thought that was an unwise thing to say and I told him so. Subsequently, there were other statements, including statements off the record that were relayed to me. They said, "We heard from a very senior official in ECB that ..." so all of that noise was certainly making it difficult for Ireland to build the confidence to stay in the markets.