Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

One month ago the leaders of Europe emerged from another emergency summit and announced that they had taken steps that would finally contain the sovereign debt crisis. In only a matter of days this was shown to be a nonsense and the crisis has escalated dramatically since then. There is no longer any room for doubt: a failure by the leaders of Europe and the European Central Bank to change their policies will lead to the end of the euro, probably within weeks. This was believed to be impossible at the start of this year but it is now the subject of urgent contingency planning in every country and every major international company.

The economic and social implications of the disintegration of the euro are almost too great to imagine and could turn a crisis into a catastrophe. The mistakes of the past year and a half have been considerable. Adherence to irrelevant fiscal and monetary orthodoxies has escalated the contagion every time they have been reasserted. In summit after summit we have heard about lines being drawn under the problem and about confidence being restored. Each agreement has failed because the fundamental policies underlying them have failed. This was debatable for a while but it is now almost six months since the need for a radical departure became crystal-clear and six months since we outlined as much in the House.

However, it is not too late to pull back from the brink. There is one final chance to save the euro and to prevent a failure of truly historic proportions. It is still entirely avoidable. Also, it is not too late for the Government to set out a policy and launch the diplomatic initiative that it has been discussing for nine months but which it has failed to actually implement. The Taoiseach's speech today is full of the rhetoric and language so beloved of mandarins throughout Europe but which reveals nothing.

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