Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I would like to focus my comments on Greece. It is clear failures on both sides in this negotiation have led to the current situation where negotiations have been suspended. The Greek people are being faced with an impossible "take it or leave it" option on Sunday. Several years ago, in previous negotiations, one Greek MP reflected that the Greek people were given a choice between being killed and dying. It feels that, several years on, that is the choice they are faced with again.

The Greeks have not acted necessarily as well as they could in these negotiations but it is difficult to see what choice they have. The conditions that are being demanded of Greece are so detailed that, were they to start accepting them, in no meaningful way would they be running their own country. If one looks at the conditions, they stink of special interests. Why is the eurozone demanding that Greek restaurants change the rate of VAT they charge on their food or that Greek hotels change the rate of VAT charged on their rooms? That is no one's business but the Greek Government's.

We had to suffer a troika programme here and targets had to be met, but it was up to the Irish Government and the Irish Parliament to meet those targets. While it was humiliating enough to be in a troika programme, at least the troika emphasised repeatedly that it was up to us to decide how we met the various targets. The level of control being demanded by the eurozone of Greece is completely unacceptable. We would never have accepted it. For the Greeks, it is utterly humiliating, so what has happened? They have been backed, step by step, into a corner, and they are now doing the only thing that people backed into a corner can do - they are coming out fighting. They have been given no choice. They have been humiliated, they have been beaten down and now they are being accused of all sorts of things.

Ireland, as a troika programme country, could take a leading role in helping to resolve this crisis. The loans can and should be extended, not with microeconomic conditionality and the sort of nonsense that is being demanded but with institution building conditionality. For example, it seems to be the case that the Greek state has a problem collecting all the revenues due to the state. The Irish Revenue Commissioners is recognised as one of the most sophisticated revenue bodies on Earth so, rather than our Minister for Finance demanding capital controls on Greek banks, why do we not talk to the Greek Government about sending out 100 Revenue officials to undertake institution building? This capacity-building approach is what has been used with highly indebted countries all over the world over recent years. It is a different approach that works and that should be explored. It is an approach the Irish Government could bring to the table as a different way forward.

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