Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

My party voted against the guarantee and that was the correct action to take. I acknowledge, however, that we must address the situation in which we find ourselves. The promissory notes should never have been drawn up and the guarantee should never have been put in place. However, these things happened. As a sovereign state, Ireland took on responsibilities which, as many would now acknowledge, it should not have taken on. These are legal responsibilities. At what stage can these responsibilities be repudiated and what would be the consequences of our doing so, particularly if we were to take unilateral action in this regard? We are in an extremely difficult position. There may be Members who are used to playing poker. We would be getting into a poker game if we were to take a unilateral decision to repudiate our debts. We could take such a route, regardless of whether the notes involved were secured or unsecured. On the other hand, we could follow the advice offered in the Government amendment. In other words, we will not take unilateral action; we will work to the best of our ability with our partners in Europe in respect of the EU-IMF deal and seek to the best of our ability to reduce the effect of and restructure the decisions taken prior to the election of the Government. We must also deal with the commitments made by others which we are legally bound to honour.

That is the nature of the dilemma we face. The motion is lovely and reflects the wishful thinking in which we would all like to engage. However, the Government amendment reflects the reality we are obliged to face. The Government is doing a good job within the parameters it has been set. There is a need for a degree of recognition to the effect that this is the broader context within which we are working. There is also a need to investigate the possibility of restructuring the promissory notes in a way that would reduce the country's financial burden. This must be done in consultation with our EU partners. The approach I have outlined is the correct one to take.

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