Paschal Donohoe (Fine Gael)

So much happened yesterday of such scale that, at times, it is quite difficult for us to comprehend the nature of what is happening to our country. Two points that stood out yesterday have to be emphasised on the Order of Business. The effect of the decisions the Government took yesterday will be to double the national debt. As a consequence of all the moves that are being taken, some €40 billion of taxpayers' money will be pumped into Anglo Irish Bank. That is significantly more than the amount of tax that is collected in this State in any given year. When the Government talks about issues like this, it is quite happy to quote what is being said about them in the international press and the financial media. It is important to look at this morning's editorial in the Financial Times. In fairness, it says that some parts of the Government scheme have to be noted and recognised, but it goes on to say it should only be done if two criteria are met - "if the cost to taxpayers has been minimised" and it "draws a line under the bank's losses". The newspaper states "unfortunately .... neither of these conditions has clearly been met". The section of the editorial relating to the exposure of taxpayers continues "unfortunately, the resulting losses will not be shared beyond the equity holders". This brings us back to the losses faced by taxpayers as a result of events at Anglo Irish Bank. Why are the bank's bondholders not being allowed to suffer the same losses as its shareholders?