Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The agreement has reduced Ireland’s vulnerability from the huge debts taken on by Irish taxpayers as a result of the cost of rescuing failed private banks. Irish citizens can look forward once again with positive expectations. The legacy banking debt hoisted on the Irish taxpayer is a heavy burden and the promissory notes in Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide served as a millstone around the neck of the Irish taxpayer. It was referred to often in this House and this burden served to erode confidence and limit the economy’s ability to grow.

The new plan will likely materially improve perceptions of our debt sustainability in the eyes of potential investors in Ireland, leading to lower interest rates and faster growth than would otherwise have been the case. A successful Irish exit from the bailout by the end of this year would prove that a combination of intensive national reform efforts and European solidarity can deliver results.

Let there be no doubt, this is no silver bullet to end all our economic problems. After the catastrophic economic management of the past decade, there is still a long way to travel in our country’s journey back to prosperity and full employment. The damage done by these financial institutions will take many years to rectify. Even as the lower interest rates resulting with this agreement reduce Ireland’s deficit, a very large and unsustainable gap between Government revenues and spending remains to be fixed; that gap is unrelated to our banking crisis. Only we in Ireland can fix this problem by reforming the way our State and country works.

We continue to negotiate to improve other core elements of the onerous bailout deal inherited from the previous Government. Today, we have secured a vastly better deal on the cost of bailing out Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide. Tomorrow we continue our efforts to seek European assistance to recover as much taxpayers’ money as possible from the other financial institutions bailed out by the State.

That is an important consideration that should not be lost on people.

Eurozone leaders, including Chancellor Merkel and President Hollande, have publicly recognised the unique circumstances behind Ireland’s sovereign debt crisis and mandated the Eurogroup to address these issues. What today shows is that the more Ireland is prepared to help itself, the more others will assist us along the difficult path we still have to travel. It is a step forward in accelerating our path back to economic recovery and renewed job creation. It can give us confidence that our goals are achievable and our hopes realisable.

It is important to recognise the independent efforts of the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, his staff and officials from the European Central Bank in securing this agreement. I am confident it will contribute hugely to the ongoing rebuilding of trust between Irish and European authorities in the management of the banking crisis and other challenges.

Today’s result has been brought about by a strong and determined collective effort by the entire Government. We made perfectly clear 18 months ago that this outcome was one of our principal economic objectives. I thank the Tánaiste and all Ministers for their contribution to it. Most of all, I publicly thank the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, and his officials for leading these negotiations to a successful conclusion. The general public may not be aware that the staff of the Department of Finance worked through the night on many occasions in the past 18 months. Their dedicated service to the State in their tireless, persistent and patient work over that period should serve as an inspiration to all public servants.

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