Mr. Derek Moran:

There are various elements to it on which Mr. McCarthy can elaborate. We had two crises. We had a financial and a fiscal crisis. Total revenues – taxes coming into the Exchequer – collapsed. The figures dropped from approximately €50 billion to approximately €32 billion at their lowest. We lost €18 billion in revenues on the fiscal side per annum, all of which had to be replaced. At the same time the unemployment rate climbed from full employment to 15% in that period. Suddenly, we had significant outlays in social spending. Spending pressures increased and we had a fiscal contribution.