Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

-----costed them and circulated them. We made our case about subordinated bond investors taking a portion of the hit. We need to tease out the Government's view on senior bondholders and the terms that are to be negotiated. The Minister for Finance was quite circumspect about this matter this morning.

This is a most serious set of circumstances, catastrophic for many. The Government seems to believe it is business as usual but it is not. For that reason, I propose, in the interest of our country and people, that we now have a rational debate on what we must do to pull the country back from the brink of the economic cliff to which it has been led by the Taoiseach, Deputy Brian Cowen, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Brian Lenihan, and the rest of the Government owing to their failed banking strategy. The failure of the banking strategy is now threatening Ireland. We need to stand up and do something about it.

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