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

In Question No. 9 I asked the Taoiseach whether he had spoken to Chancellor Merkel at the European Council meeting and whether he had discussed retrospective debt forgiveness for Ireland with her or with any other European leader. He said he did not. In his reply, he is now saying that the investment in AIB and Bank of Ireland and so on, which the previous Government made, was effective. It was always understood that the retrospective debt forgiveness was outside of those; it was in respect of losses in other banks. In 2012, when the game changer meeting was announced with Mario Monti and the then Commissioner and so on, it was understood that the option of selling AIB and Bank of Ireland was always there. The non-recoupable debt that was entered into was always the key point. The Taoiseach promised to burn the bondholders. The former Tánaiste did it in more graphic terms when he said it was "Frankfurt's way or Labour's way". We know Jean-Claude Trichet said a bomb would go off and that it would be in Dublin that it would go off. He said that to the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan. The Minister confirmed that to the banking inquiry. The European Union's position that banks must not be allowed to fail, after Lehmann's, and that the bondholders must not be burned was, therefore, very clear. That was made clear to the previous Government and to this Government.

On the debt issue, there was a decision in 2012 by the European Council. We were led by the Taoiseach and the former Tánaiste that this was a game changer of a decision, which would lead to a retrospective debt deal. The Ministers, Deputies Noonan and Howlin, had a press conference about it and said we could expect about €6 billion. We cannot dress it up or camouflage all of that by identifying AIB as the new route. That was always there as a route. Bank of Ireland was always there as a route, before any mention of a game changer. Is it now the Government's position that it is no longer seeking a retrospective debt deal? I just want a simple yes or no response to that.

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