Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)

It is a point of order. This scheme represents an extension of €440 million of taxpayers' money in terms of a guarantee to the banks. I accept that the Minister for Finance is a busy man in preparing the budget, but a 50-minute debate is insufficient. The Minister should make some appearance before us, even at the conclusion of the debate, so that we can deal with matters that have been raised during the debate and over which only he has discretion.

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