Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

I will try to be as brief as possible. There is a Minister waiting outside. We are eating into the time allocated for the next debate. Senator Darragh O'Brien spoke about the appointment of Mr. Cardiff to the European Court of Auditors. This matter was also raised by a number of Senators. According to a report in today's Irish Examiner, the Minister for Finance has said that as far as he and a number of his EU partners are concerned, Mr. Cardiff is an acceptable candidate who is technically well qualified for the job. We will endeavour to have a debate on that matter at an early stage.

The Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, and the Taoiseach have asked the banks to pass on the reduction in the rates to their customers. The Taoiseach has said that legislation will be introduced, if necessary, to compel them to do so.