Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response. I will ignore the political swipe he made, which sounds rather tired at this stage, and focus instead on the substance of the issue. He referred to differences of interpretation. What we read last night from the finance Ministers of Germany, the Netherlands and Finland was not a new interpretation of the summit statement from the end of June. The three Ministers rewrote the statement and made fundamental changes which are, without question, to Ireland's disadvantage. That is the nub of the issue, but the Minister appears to be in denial and gives the impression that last night's statement was not significant. In fact, it marked a shift in position. If the statement of the three finance Ministers reflects the views of their respective Governments, it is an extremely serious matter. Either the Minister does not recognise that or he does not wish to admit it. I want to have an open and honest debate on the issue.

The Minister referred to the reduction in bond spreads in recent months. This is a positive development and the National Treasury Management Agency has made good progress in this regard. However, the reduction has been connected in no small part to the summit statement issued at the end of June. The markets have priced in that Ireland will secure a deal on its banking debt. This progress will be reversed, as we saw today, if it appears the deal struck at the summit will not be implemented. The fundamental issue is whether countries will be treated equally. According to the statement issued last night, countries would not be treated equally for reasons of timing because Ireland has recapitalised its banks whereas countries such as Spain have not yet done so. We need to address that issue.

I ask the Minister to set out what milestones lie ahead. Where is all of this going? We know it will take some time to establish the new European banking supervisory body. What level of engagement is taking place between the Minister and his officials and our European colleagues? Will he raise the issues referred to in last night's statement directly with his colleagues in the euro group? Will they be raised at Heads of State and Government level? Will clarification be provided on whether all Governments remain resolutely committed to the principles enshrined in the statement issued following the June summit? What action will the Government take in response to last night's statement?

See this speech in context