Marc MacSharry (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

You said in your opening statement that one of the only points of criticism that you might have is that "the Irish government did not consult with its European partners." You also said that the blanket guarantee, in your view, while on one hand saying the Commission didn't have a view, but then you quickly pointed out that your view was that it probably added to the fiscal cost. Is that a fair assessment?

In John Hurley's opening statement to us here, he said:

As a result of contacts with the ECB, it was the view at the time that an overall European initiative of which Ireland might be part was remote and that any decisions in relation to Irish banks would ... [have] to be made by the Irish authorities. The Government was expected to stand behind its banks and a Lehman-type situation was to be avoided.

He also said - I continue quoting - again:

There was a strong view on the night that the Government ... [has] one opportunity to assuage the markets. If the decisions taken were considered inadequate and failed the consequences for the banking system would be devastating and lead to very serious economic and social fallout for the country as a whole.

You said in your statement, again, that the Government should have consulted with the European partners before the guarantee decision, while John Hurley, as I have said, the Governor, believed that there was no help from Europe coming and that Ireland expected ... was expected to stand by its banks and that phrase, "no bank should fail." Would you take issue with Mr. Hurley's statements?