Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I understand that. That is important and something we can take note of as a committee as our work informs the development of a potential fund in an Irish context.

I think a degree of political consensus is emerging in Ireland that we should also develop a fund of this nature. In scale, it will clearly not be close to that of the Norwegian fund, but I think the principle is accepted that this is an approach we are going to take. It is a responsible approach. Would Mr. Gjedrem say the presence of a fund of this nature has a stabilising effect overall on the economy? There is evidence to show that over the years Norwegian debt levels and the cost of servicing the Norwegian national debt have been lower because the presence of this fund has a reassuring impact on the international bond markets. Would it be fair to say that?