Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

There is a deliberate policy of disallowing and transferring questions, which is reducing accountability in the House.

The two questions I have tabled relate to an important issue, one that was caught in the wider set of questions tabled last week but was not answered. I want a straight and clear answer as to why the issue identified by the Government from the outset as being its first priority has not been raised in important bilateral meetings, particularly with Prime Minister David Cameron. Last week, the Taoiseach told me he was leaving the general negotiation on the interest rate to the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, because of the eurozone decision of 11 March, but the same excuse cannot be used in respect of bilateral loans.

If the British Government unilaterally moved to new terms and reduced its interest rate, does the Taoiseach not agree that the hands of other EU governments and Heads of State would be forced to act? Has the Taoiseach done anything at all to negotiate with, for example, the British to intervene with the French and the Germans in respect of a reduced interest rate? We have had enough of the Taoiseach's standard reply of recent weeks, namely, "If it comes up, I will raise it". Last week, the Taoiseach stated he would raise the matter at the European Council.

In terms of the meetings with the British Prime Minister, it is incredible that the Taoiseach has not raised the issue of the reduced interest rate or enlisted his support for Ireland's case for better terms under the EU-IMF programme, in particular the lower interest rate as agreed by the EU Heads of State as far back as last March. It is the Government's first priority, yet all of the Taoiseach's actions to date at meetings with the EU Heads of State and at bilateral meetings suggest his focus has been on photo calls and so on, with the dirty and more difficult work being handed to others while he avoids dealing with the crunch issues in the one-to-one meetings with Prime Minister Cameron and others.

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