Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

Did the Taoiseach table any particular proposals or ideas for the meeting of the eastern partnership? Did he raise the issue of what most observers would see as the political show trial of former Prime Minister Tymoshenko? There is a difficulty in progressing with the eastern partnership if regimes, either in Belarus or Ukraine, continue with practices that are not acceptable to the democratic norms to which we adhere in the European Union. Some steel needs to be shown in this relationship.

As the Minister who brought the proposal to chair the OSCE to the Cabinet, can the Taoiseach assure us that the resources will be made available to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to chair this prestigious forum adequately in 2012?

In the bilateral meetings between the Taoiseach and the Prime Ministers of Austria, the Netherlands and Finland on the margins of the meeting, did he talk to them about the emerging proposals concerning bondholders, in particular the Greek sovereign bondholders who are likely to lose up to 50% of their money? There will be widespread recapitalisation of European banks, following on from the sovereign debt default in Greece. This is a very important opportunity for Ireland because the two consistent roadblocks to burning the bondholders in Irish banks will now be removed. We were told all along that sovereign debt default, bank recapitalisation and contagion would be the key issues for us. We are now on the cusp of a major opportunity, perhaps the first and only one for Ireland, to force bank bondholders to share the burden. Did the Taoiseach tease that out with the Dutch, Finnish and Austrian prime ministers? If so, what response did he get from them as regards Ireland having an opportunity - particularly in terms of Anglo Irish Bank - to burn those bond holders?

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