Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Who is taking the questions? The Tánaiste will forgive me for asking. The presence of the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Lucinda Creighton, suggests she might take questions, which she is well able to do. I would like to ask her about her criticisms of finance Ministers at the Eurogroup meeting, but I am not going to do that.

I put it to the Tánaiste that the Taoiseach in his speech to the House said that while the new Cypriot President was welcomed to the table, there was no discussion at the summit of the developing situation with Cyprus as it was to be discussed by the finance Ministers. It is an incredible statement. We have just witnessed an incredibly incompetent approach to the resolution of the Cyprus crisis which has been going on for nine months. It has almost precipitated a significant banking run and a meltdown in Cyprus with consequences beyond to such an extent that capital controls have been imposed, which are unprecedented in the EU and are against its entire spirit. Banks have remained closed since 15 March 2013. The Tánaiste's colleague, the Cypriot foreign Minister, has admitted that Cyprus had not anticipated the Eurogroup demand that Nicosia impose a deposit tax. He went on to say that Luxembourg was the only country to support the Cypriot position. Behind the scenes, Greece had said it was with them but the only country to support them at the Eurogroup meeting and in general was Luxembourg. Everybody else remained silent. The foreign Minister said the proposal of the troika - or directorate as he called it - to impose a draconian deposit tax represented a ruthless decision to wreck the country's economic system.

Why did Ireland remain silent? Why did we not back Cyprus in this situation? It is extraordinary that Cyprus has been hung out to dry and that decisions have been taken which will have far-reaching implications for its sustainability as an economy into the future. Do we have any principled positions on these issues? We welcomed the original across-the-board tax on deposits, which was correctly overturned by the Cypriot Parliament. Why did we not support Cyprus in its hour of need?

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