Michael Kennedy (Dublin North, Fianna Fail)

I am coming to it. I welcome the fact that the Seanad passed it last night. Will the Minister of State impress upon the Minister for Finance that the cost of the scheme, the full details of which he is to announce next week, should not be borne by the customers of the banks? The cost incurred by the banks in obtaining the State guarantee should be paid from their net profits and not passed on by way of increased bank charges to customers. We need to have total transparency in all the documentation we receive next week. Everyone believes what we have done is correct but the public, including customers, has a right to answers to certain questions.

I read in this morning's newspapers that it has been indicated that bank charges will come down following the stabilisation of the market, in the United States and elsewhere.

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