Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)

The Deputy referred to the German finance Minister. I would refer him to a very long interview that minister did with Le Monde, published on Sunday, in which he gave an absolute commitment to the future of the eurozone. He stated his ambition was for the euro to grow to be the most significant reserve currency in the world, that he was confident of its future and that we needed greater fiscal consolidation and a financial transaction tax. The Minister dealt with a variety of other issues, as recently as Sunday. Any suggestion that at either leader or finance Minister levels the authorities in France or Germany are planning the demise of the euro is entirely incorrect. There is no such intention. Obviously, we are aware of the ongoing debate and are keeping in very close contact.

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