Dr. Michael Somers:

It was, kind of, an unusual situation. The way NAMA was developing, it looked as though they were going to need €60 billion funding to buy the loans off the banks. I knew Mr. Trichet for very many years because I had been on various committees with him and I knew him from the 1980s. We had been on the EU monetary committee and we were involved with setting up the EBRD, etc., and I knew him reasonably well on a personal basis.

The Minister approached me about it, he said, "Would you go and talk to Mr. Trichet and tell him we need €60 billion?" So I said to him, "Would it not be more appropriate for the Central Bank or the Department of Finance to do it?" And he said "Would you go and do it you know him?" So I said, "Okay, I'll go and do it." So I arranged it anyway, I got my PA to ring Mr. Trichet's office and said, "Look, I'd like to go out and see him." I don't think we said what exactly I wanted and he said, "Yes, that's fine." And I arranged to go out and see him I think it was about March 2009. I have the date here somewhere.

But that information got out to the Central Bank who were, I think, quite perturbed about it. They and the Department of Finance insisted on accompanying me out to see Mr. Trichet. The thing became a bit bizarre after that. I think there were two from the Central Bank - the Governor and the head of the director general and I think it was Kevin Cardiff from the Department of Finance. They went out themselves and I went out on a separate plane. For the life of me I can't remember why. We went into the ECB building and it became a bit fuzzy but they arranged that we would meet some officials from the ECB and what surprised me was the length of time that the Central Bank people took in trying to explain our situation to the ECB people. I thought that they would be in regular contact and they would be way up to speed. Then at some stage or other I said, "What about meeting Mr. Trichet?" And I was told Mr. Trichet is not available. So I thought that was very strange. So I phoned back to my PA in Dublin and I said "Would you ever ring Jean-Claude's office and find out what's going on here, I am supposed to see him?" So she contacted them anyway and she came back and she said "Oh yeah no, he is available to see you at 11 o'clock or 12 o'clock", - whatever the time was.

Anyway, it was coming up to that time and I said, "Where does the president sit?" So the Governor of the Central Bank insisted on coming with me and we went in to see Jean-Claude Trichet. As I say I knew him well, I was on first name terms with him. I was quite surprised that the Governor was not on first-name terms with Monsieur le Président, etc., and I would have thought they would have had a closer relationship. So we chatted anyway and I said, "Listen Jean-Claude, I am here on a rather difficult mission. You are aware of our difficulties and I am afraid we are going to have to come to you looking for €60 billion."