Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Martin asked a couple of questions about the ESM. I am certain about a few things. I am certain of the decision of the European Council of 29 June which stated that the ESM would have the possibility of direct recapitalisation. I am also certain that cannot apply until the various elements of banking union are in place. They will not be in place until at least the second half of 2014 - before any such application can be dealt with.

There is some talk about elements of this from the European point of view. There was the same speculation about the reduction in the interest rate, the extension of the loan maturation and the whole business of the promissory notes. It was agreed in June that potential retrospective and retroactive application of the instrument of the ESM will be decided on a case-by-case basis and by mutual agreement and possible cases will be discussed and assessed on their own merits once the ESM enters into force. Nothing that has happened has changed that.

I made the point on a number of occasions that it is very important that when the European Council makes decisions that it stands by them, so I am certain of that. Each time we have had a European Council meeting this has been referred to in the same language of that possibility of recapitalisation. As the Deputy knows, Ireland was the first to have to deal with this, without any tools or instrument available to it.

If he had been around at home-----

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