Aideen Hayden (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House today for this important debate. I would like first to comment on what Senator Byrne said. It is typical of him to make cheap political points. Far from being triumphalist, the Government parties were magnanimous, in particular to Fianna Fáil in acknowledging the excellent speech made by Deputy Michael McGrath. It was a sense of relief rather than triumphalism that Members of this House and of the Lower House felt as they met into early hours of last Thursday morning.

This deal represents a significant step forward for this country. As outlined by the Minister of State, it brings significant gains for the Irish people. I do not propose to waste time repeating the significant savings which this country will achieve as a result of this deal. The Government has demonstrated that it can work cohesively and, dare I say, quietly. The complexity of the deal on the promissory notes is matched only by the unprecedented lack of rumour and speculation. Not only are the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste to be congratulated, so too are the officials of all the Departments, members of the diplomatic corps and others who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to bring about this deal.

Critics of this deal argue that the Government should go back and insist on a debt write-down by way of a sharing of the principal amount with other eurozone members, whose banks, it is argued, were stabilised by us bailing out our banks. I believe this deal on the promissory notes is in effect a debt write-down, a rose that, as the great bard might say, smells just as sweet on this St Valentine's Day.