John Gilroy (Labour)

It is lovely to be able to say that from inside the hallowed walls of the Seanad Chamber. How will we make social welfare payments or pay disability allowances if we do not have access to ESM funding after 2013? We face a funding cliff in 2014 when a sovereign bond of €11 billion must be restructured. Where will we get the funding to meet this cost if we reject the section? What will happen if we cannot secure funding in the markets or through the ESM? Senators may say I am scaremongering but the prospect of closing the deficit in one year is extremely scary. We will have to find, from public expenditure, €11 billion to restructure our bond and approximately €9 billion to finance the public service at its current level. This year, we will reduce public expenditure by €3.6 billion, which will be extraordinarily painful and, in many cases, unfair. What would happen if we had to reduce public expenditure by €20 billion?