Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)

I thank the Chair for the opportunity to address Senator Barrett's Bill on behalf of the Government and to address the House. I congratulate the Senator on the publication of this Bill and on this debate, which is important for all of us. I was struck by what Senator Quinn said about "reputation". The essence of a small, open economy is its reputation. Once a reputation is lost internationally, retrieving it is difficult. A reputation affects foreign direct investment, FDI, banks' capital flows and a country's capacity to extricate itself from a difficult situation. Since last year's bailout, our reputation has diminished extraordinarily. Therefore, the first task of the new Government was to restore that reputation step by step, block by block and brick by brick though discussions with our international partners and the international community at large.