Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I urge Fine Gael to use its influence in that regard.

There has been much commentary about the need for senior bondholders to accept a share of the burden of this crisis. When those who deplore the gradual erosion of the deposit base of the Irish banking system reflect on it, they will see the substantial contribution that was made to that process by the unhelpful level of domestic noise about this matter. Yet again, the principal Opposition party played a leading part in that - in contrast, I must say, to the relatively responsible attitude taken by the Labour Party.

Yesterday, I published the Credit Institutions (Stabilisation) Bill. The draft legislation provides broad powers to the Minister for Finance to act on financial stability grounds to effect swift restructuring actions and recapitalisation measures as envisaged in the programme. That Bill will be debated in the Dáil later today and I propose to answer questions raised on that Bill at that time.

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