Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The Deputy has just agreed that it is not possible for me to give a predication of the outcome of these discussions which have not begun. If I may, I wish to answer the Deputy's other question on the Government's objective. As outlined in that statement, the objective is simply to ensure, as quickly as possible, that we have a banking system that can access funds on the open market and that those markets are providing funds to the banking system not only in Ireland but to the euro area generally at prices which are reasonable, affordable and ensure that they can be engines for future recovery on the basis of moneys and interest rates at which those moneys will be provided. That is clearly the overall macro-economic objective of this Government concerning these matters. This issue is affecting the eurozone across Europe, for us particularly but for others as well.

We will sit down with those colleagues in a constructive and open manner to ensure that the analysis is correct and we get an outcome that will ensure that the banking system functions in this country. It is true, as the Deputy said earlier, that we had a bank guarantee. He made the point as if it was something that was not correct. Yes, we did have a guarantee for the reasons I have given - to avoid an implosion of this economy in September 2008. The fact of the matter is that other countries have had to do that also. We are not unique in that respect.

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