Eugene Regan (Fine Gael)

Having said that, no lessons will have been learned if we do not recognise how we got into this situation. It is very simple. Unsustainable and reckless lending practices by the banks, coupled with reckless and inflationary expenditure by the Government, provided the context which created the lack of confidence in the Irish banks and the run on the banks earlier this week.

I have a problem with the structure of the Bill. There is a general principle in legislation that primary legislation should set out the policies and the principles and that a statutory instrument adopted by the Minister would set out more details but within the parameters set by the primary legislation. I cannot find the parameters. It is at the entire discretion of the Minister, therefore we might as well be reading a statutory instrument.