Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I accept that a deal is not certain. If it was, the Minister would announce it, but I hope one is close. My party hopes the Minister will get a good deal but not at any cost. There is one issue I ask him to put into the melting pot. I do not have the figures, but perhaps the Minister does and can work on them. In recent years when Irish Government bonds were trading at a figure of about 80% against par at some stages, inevitably the European Central Bank would have purchased some of them to have a floor in the market. Some commentators have said the European Central Bank is sitting on a profit of €3 billion to €4 billion on Irish Government bonds that it bought at the time and which are now trading above par, which is a good sign. Will the Minister ask the European Central Bank in the discussions on reducing the principal figure of €28.1 billion not to make a profit on the backs of the Irish people by speculating in the bond market to make a profit of €3 billion or €4 billion? Perhaps the money could be used to reduce the principal at no loss to it.

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