Results 9,321-9,340 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: -----the sovereign debt. The gentlemen in town from the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the Commission see nothing other than a technical distinction between the banks' debt and the State's sovereign debt. I am sorry to have to tell this to Deputy Dooley but, unfortunately, that is a fact.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: The Minister's statement-----

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: The Minister's statement was devoid of any information to the people as to who the chief negotiator will be in the next few days. Will it be Professor Honohan? Will there be a team of negotiators? Who are they? Are they qualified? Have they the interests of the banks primarily at heart or those of the taxpayers and, more important, the citizens? We are entitled to know the names of the...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: The Minister needs to tell us the structure and the template of these negotiations. We want to know what is and what is not on the negotiation table. The Labour Party believes it is not advisable for the Government to include the 12.5% corporation tax rate in the negotiations. Will we get a serious briefing from the Minister as to what is on the table? The people want only one thing from...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: -----and rescue is expensive no matter who it is done by. I said that at the time. Check the Official Report for my speech.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: There were significantly cheaper, better and faster ways of doing it.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: The Labour Party did not consent to the guarantee because we did not believe Fianna Fáil should be given a blank cheque. That blank cheque has turned out to be the largest cheque in the history of the State.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: No.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: Professor Honohan also stated: Second, the wisdom of leaving senior management in place while providing an open-ended guarantee to two institutions [could that be Fianna Fáil's friends in Anglo Irish Bank and the Irish Nationwide Building Society?] which – it should have been clear – were on the road to insolvency does not seem to have been considered. That is a condemnation of this...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: Will the Minister set out the proposed additional debt burden of the current ongoing discussions? The Taoiseach yesterday spoke about several possible different types of arrangement. Professor Honohan this morning spoke about a bank bailout in the form of loan facilities. If this is correct – which I believe it is anyway because most of this has already been agreed – it means a further...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: -----over the time that we are in this, from ten years, being how most Government debt is funded, into three years. So it means that we join a red queen's race where we are constantly racing to try to catch up, but cannot move any further. Three-year money at an interest rate of 5% plus is not cheap. It is a penalty rate of interest. Is that what the Government has now conceded and is...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: The Deputy should listen to the questions because he might learn something.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: We had the guarantee for six crippled institutions with different ranges of problems.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: We had six crippled institutions. Two and a quarter years later, we still have the same six institutions. Two of them are albatrosses around our neck. Another two are large, important banks that we would like to have seen restored to financial health. One of them seemed to be almost there, but the current situation over the last eight weeks has damaged that institution again. If we sell...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: In his radio interview this morning Professor Honohan spoke about a large loan of tens of billions of euro. He spoke of large teams of negotiators. He said: "That's why the large technical teams are sitting down discussing these matters." Who is the leader of the Irish team? Is it Professor Honohan? Does he have carte blanche from the Government on the negotiations? Is he a...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: Could the Minister tell us who is the leader of the Irish team of negotiators? Broadly, what are their terms of reference and what is the template to which they are working? That comes back to Deputy Noonan's previous question. Two European funds can be accessed. Which fund does the Minister see the teams accessing? Presumably they are acting at his direction, or is it at the direction...

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: So the Minister is in charge of them. Is he the negotiator?

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: Has the Minister met the teams?

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: No, no, no.

Irish Banking: Statements (18 Nov 2010)

Joan Burton: I want to know if the Minister is the leader of the negotiating team or if there is a Michael Collins figure, be it Professor Honohan-----