Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I absolutely agree with the Deputy that the banking sector owes a huge debt to the people but he might be getting his history a little muddled. With respect, he is confusing the bank guarantee with the bank bailout. It is indeed the case that his party opposed the bank guarantee. There were two bank bailouts, however. There was the bailout carried out by Fianna Fáil when in government with the Green Party, namely, that relating to Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide. We will never see that money again because the institutions in question were dead and should not have been bailed out. I opposed that bailout and so did the Deputy's party. There was a second bank bailout, namely, that relating to Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland. Not only did the Deputy not oppose this, he supported it. He was the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform at the time and probably signed the cheque. That was the bank bailout he actually supported. It happened when the Fianna Gael–Labour Party Government was in office; that is a fact. That bailout was correct because Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland are functioning, surviving, living banks. It made sense to save them. They were the pillar banks of the Irish economy at the time. It was necessary to protect people's savings and to continue to have banks that could lend to business and issue mortgages.

As the Deputy pointed out, Bank of Ireland has already repaid all the money the State put into it. I believe that Allied Irish Banks will do this also. How will it be done? It will be done through dividends being paid to the Exchequer. That is happening through the bank levy, which the Deputy mentioned, and also through the sale of shares. Already, 25% of Allied Irish Banks has been sold and that has brought billions of euro back for the Exchequer. In due course, and at the right time, the rest will be sold also. That will enable us to recover the money that was put into Allied Irish Banks. The bank bailout of Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland made sense and the money will be recovered. Unfortunately, the money involved in the shameful bailout of Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide will never be recovered.

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