Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. As other speakers have mentioned, my party opposed the original legislation which this Bill seeks to amend. At the time, my party colleague and then boss, Arthur Morgan, argued that the loans facilitated for Greece were not an act of solidarity to assist a beleaguered member state but rather a massive bailout for toxic banks. He predicted that this would lead to further difficulties and add to the debt burden. The Government at the time, in common with this Government, dismissed the claims and promised that the legislation would deliver stability and safeguard our economy, but since that initial legislation, some of his prophecies have, sadly, been vindicated. Austerity, bailouts and cuts did not work and Greece is looking at its next bailout.

The original legislation failed. It was a bad deal then and it will be a bad deal now and in the future. The changes we are discussing have come about as a result of a further round of economic changes arising from the July summit. It should be noted that this Government has consistently held to the terms of the original and maintained the position that the terms could not be substantially changed. It has continued to implement the cutbacks demanded by the troika on the basis that change was not possible, yet we have seen that, in July, the terms were changed to reflect that the deal was failing the Greek economy. We need an Irish Government which will stand up for Irish interests and not just sit on the sidelines and wait for changes to suit other states. We have become a beneficiary of the consequential reduction for Greece and this is to be welcomed. However, it must be remembered that this is only a fraction of the money paid to bail out the failed banking sector.

The original deal remains a bad deal because its fundamentals are wrong. This is not a dogmatic or ideological judgment but rather it is based on the evidence. We can note what is happening in our economy, what is happening to our people and the continual implementation of cuts and cutbacks in public services, the sale of public assets and the introduction of aggressive taxes come December. There is talk of growth but at the same time money and investment is being taken out of the economy.

It is both our people and our economy which suffer and nearly half a million people are unemployed, of whom 20% are young people under the age of 25. More than 40,000 people have emigrated and tens and hundreds of thousands of people are struggling to pay mortgages and utility bills and to buy food. The response has been to put a greater burden on poorer households by means of the household charge.

This is also a bad deal for Europe. Since the meeting in July, the euro has lurched from one crisis to another. Italy and Spain are now in the sights of the speculators, as are the French banks. Greek bond yields are now at unprecedented high levels and every commentator and economist is talking about default.

This legislation which we are being asked to consider had already failed the test of time before it had been presented in the House. This is not a crisis of sovereign debt and it cannot be solved by the nationalisation of private sector debt and the privatisation of national assets. This is a banking crisis brought about by the markets and years of reckless borrowing and lending, as other contributors to the debate today have mentioned. The level of bailout placed on national governments has brought economies to their knees. The July agreement sought to have governments solemnly reaffirm their inflexible determination to honour fully their own individual sovereign signature.

Regardless of the shapes thrown by the Government to the media, it has signed up to the Anglo Irish Bank promissory note and it is unwilling to go after many of the bondholders in any concrete way. Worse, given the lowering of economic activity in the State and the high levels of unemployment, the summit affirmed to meet commitments to sustainable fiscal conditions and structural reforms. In the case of Ireland, this is a commitment by the Government to fully implement the austerity programme agreed by Fianna Fáil in 2010. However, another way is possible, as referred to by Senator Barrett. Now is the time for euro area member states to contribute to ensuring financial stability within the euro area. To do this what is required is a clear view of the scale of the problem facing all the European banks. Given the interconnected nature of the problem, it requires a European-wide solution to address the European banking crisis, including significant burden-sharing.

There is a need for a banking solution to the banking problem. We need to open up fully the asset books of all the banks across Europe. We need to have a look at the hidden liabilities and the true asset values in order to have a better idea of what we are facing. The EU-wide private sector debt cannot and should not be shifted onto the national balance sheet of small peripheral and open economies. Sovereign debt issues can be addressed and resolved by investment, employment and a return to growth.

We must look for a solution to the core issue and work on what is in the best interests of the Irish people. Sinn Féin believes there can be employment and growth across Europe. My party welcomes the reduction in the interest rates but this is only a returning of a small proportion of the moneys used to bail out the European banking system. Sinn Féin believes that the EFSF, European Financial Stability Facility, in its current form, will not deliver economic growth or employment and neither is it in the interests of the Irish people or the people of Europe. We will oppose the Bill for all our worth and argue once more for a more comprehensive and sustainable solution to the current crisis.