Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I take the Senator's point. There may be more ample resources following the enactment of this legislation given the amount the Exchequer should acquire under it.

On the point about the Central Bank, the Governor of the Irish Central Bank sits on the governing council of the European Central Bank, and a liaison is maintained between him and the President of the European Central Bank, Monsieur Trichet. That is the normal line of communication. The authorities at the ECB in Frankfurt were apprised of the developments in Ireland on an ongoing basis throughout recent events, and they apprised us of developments in other European countries during that period.

One of the problems in this area is that the European Central Bank can provide liquidity, and can do so at the request of our own Central Bank, but it does not operate a guarantee system for the existence or reconstruction of banks or for the protection of those who have deposits in or extended loans owing to the banks. That is an issue that will have to be examined for the future. A small state is in a very difficult position protecting financial institutions whose assets may far exceed the assets available to the state itself. In addition, in an increasingly globalised economy, financial institutions have footprints in many different jurisdictions. There is a case for a more harmonised European approach, but there is no evidence of an appetite for it materialising yet. The events of recent days may have changed perceptions on that issue.