Ivor Callely (Fianna Fail)

I regret I am running out of time because I would like to expand on this point. I say to the Minister of State, his officials and the banking groups that I would welcome the opportunity, which is merited, to have a think-in to ascertain how we can resolve the issues that exist. The Minister of State referred to the numbers of people affected by the downturn in the construction industry. Now the people who are trying to survive in the construction industry — not just the small and medium enterprises of which we know in every region — are being put under pressure by the banking sector in a very unfair manner. I am not too sure if the same banking sector would be in a position to do so if we had not given it the recent bailout.

The banks are suggesting to those people that they gave them X amount to carry out a project but are now reassessing and want them to put X amount of cash on the table. The banks also want them to dispose of some of their assets. In the present market we all know that if a person in the building industry is being asked to dispose of assets the true value of the asset cannot be realised. This is a daunting and concerning aspect at this time on a journey that may need to be completed to see the end result to the satisfaction of all the players. We have never previously experienced anything like the current economic difficulties, international currency crisis and the total financial collapse of the markets around the world. Therefore it is vital that the Minister of State and his officials——