Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

This is good news for people in the sense that those who spoke about the European Union and hope for people got a response from the European Council meeting last week. It is not a case of anyone looking for credit. I give great credit to the Irish people for their decision on the referendum, which was accepted and understood by all of the leaders of the 27 member states, not just the 17 members of the eurozone. That was credit in the bank, to use a pun, for use at an opportune time. The decision made by the Council through the process of the jobs and growth agenda, which crystallised around the election of President Hollande, the discussions on the EMU, and those arising on the conclusion of the Presidency of Denmark, set out a strategy and plan which offers consistency for people. The discussion that took place in respect of the decision, which will lead to a permanent supervisory responsibility for the European Central Bank, was brought to light by the difficulties of a number of the bigger economies in Europe.

The Minister for Finance is correct in the sense that the decision will not have an appreciable difference on one's contribution on a week-to-week basis to the budget for 2013. We still have to deal with our public financial problem at home. However, it is clear there is an opportunity for a beneficial impact on future budgets. It is also accepted the markets are now factoring in what that means in their analysis of the euro and the yields for different countries. I note the National Treasury Management Agency, NTMA, is to hold an auction for short-term money on Thursday, which will be an indication in its own way. Although we are in a programme, it will be putting a toe in the water, as it were.

The troika is in this country for its seventh analysis and this country is again expected to measure up. That is all part of the acceptance of this country as being a serious player, albeit with a serious problem. In the conclusions of the Council meeting, the fact that this country was named specifically in the context of equality of treatment, breaks and reverses what applied previously, to which I referred last week, in terms of the principle of European direction. The Council has accepted that European liability applied in the past whereby this country - the people, communities, taxpayers, workers and families - was required, as a consequence of that decision, to shoulder the entire burden. The decision brings clarity and a degree of certainty, not for the forthcoming budget but for the future.

I hope the economies of Europe will start to grow. For an exporting nation such as this it would mean more jobs but also that Europe as a unit would be able to continue to buy on the global market, which impacts on the global economy. The negotiations that will now be entered into are important, not for this budget but for the future. People ask me what figure I am talking about. I do not have any bottom line. What I have is a top line. The top line is the maximum benefit and the best result for the country and the people. The process will start next Monday with the meeting of ECOFIN Ministers where this country will be represented by the Minister for Finance.

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