Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I agree very much with the points made by Senator Fitzgerald, Senator O'Toole, Senator O'Reilly and others regarding the banks. Apart from the business sector that we are all concerned about to get the economy moving properly again, and hard-pressed mortgage holders, Senator O'Toole asked a crucial question on the release of credit on foot of the guarantee scheme this House spent all night discussing some months ago — it did not seem to be as urgent as we were told — but that is history now. The Government has huge moral authority, and perhaps more than that, on foot of the guarantee scheme to ensure that whenever recapitalisation does happen — the Leader might confirm this — that X million will be earmarked for the business sector to help get our economy moving properly again. The recapitalisation and restructuring will not be much good if the investors — the markets so to speak — continue to be unhappy about the level of banks' toxic debts.

Does the Leader believe the Government will opt for a combination of an insurance scheme and the bad bank concept? We all want to see a rescue package in place. It is badly needed but we cannot afford any more dithering on it. Can that rescue package be led by the management? Will all the management be left in place, so to speak, to lead that rescue package? I refer to the people who brought our banking system to the edge of collapse. Let us be honest; those are the people who made such a liathróidí of the whole thing, or are we saying that all the cowboys were only in Anglo Irish Bank? Those are crucial questions. I would like to hear a response from the Leader on those matters.