Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are no marks for that. The Economic Management Council did not meet the troika. The Minister for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform regularly met the troika in regard to the memorandum of understanding and the fulfilling of the conditions of the bailout programme, but the troika did not meet the Economic Management Council.

The question of the troika putting forward its view that legal clarification was required in regard to the consequences of the Dunne judgment dealing with mortgages is something that had to be dealt with and that legal clarification will be provided following the setting up of the insolvency service. That is not to be taken as any indication of a rash of house repossessions. I already made the case on that to Deputies Ó Fearghaíl and Adams.

I answered Deputy Boyd Barrett previously on the financial transaction tax. We have objected to the financial transaction tax. We have not participated in the enhanced co-operation at European level for that tax. Ireland imposes stamp duty on transactions. Clearly, we did not want to place the International Financial Services Centre at a disadvantage to London if none applied there. The Commission, in its own documents, reported on the financial transaction, but I do not speak for other countries in this regard. Now that 11 of them have signed on for enhanced co-operation with regard to introducing a financial transaction tax, Ireland, as the incoming Presidency of the Union, will not impede that although, of course, we will need to know the conditions that apply to it.

The low corporate tax rate has been an important element of investment in this country over many years. The rate is 12.5%, 11.9% effective, across the board. As Deputy Boyd Barrett will be aware, in some of the other countries in Europe-----

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