Paddy Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House to discuss this topic. It is important legislation. I wish the Minister well with it and congratulate him and the Ministers in the other member states for getting this work done two years ahead of time.

The Title of the Bill, the Finance (European Stability Mechanism and Single Resolution Fund) Bill 2021, says it all. It is all about confidence and stability. This is what this Bill is about. It is complicated and technical, and its language makes it very difficult for the ordinary person to understand it. When dealing with the Bill we must reflect on the hardship we went through since 2008 or 2010, and probably right up to 2016 or 2017. We saw banks closing and there were no credit lines, including for businesses. We saw the loss of businesses and cuts to wages, pensions and so forth. As a nation, we had more difficulties than probably any other European country during the period in question.

This Bill is what all the great heads in Europe came up with when they put their heads together. They have come up with a strategy for people within the eurozone so confidence and money can be supplied to nations or banks that get into difficulty. That is my understanding of this Bill. We do not have our own currency so we cannot regulate our own currency. We cannot adjust our currency because of our debt.

We must reflect on the fact that when we were in trouble, it was not just the banks that were the problem. We were living beyond our means and we could not bridge the gap between what we were spending and what we were taking in as a nation. We could not regulate the currency so we had nowhere to go. Therefore, we suffered greatly as a nation. I am delighted that this Bill is in place and that the great heads in Europe have brought this mechanism about and put it in place.

As I understand it, if the country is in difficulty, or if the banking sector or a section thereof within the State is in bother, the fund can kick in. Is it true that funds can be acquired by the banking sector or the nation itself? What is the case if the nation itself is living beyond its means? Can it have access to the funding being put in place?

Ireland's contribution to the fund is over €800 million. Is that an annual contribution or a once-off contribution? If the latter, is there an allowance for inflation and depreciation? Ireland was taking in €52 billion in 2012 or 2013; now the annual budget is over €90 billion. The amount has nearly doubled. Therefore, in five or ten years, the fund may not be worth what it is today. I ask the Minister to clarify how much we are paying in. Can the nation itself access this type of funding?

We are on the right track. Europe is on the right track in this regard.We have seen how the nations of Europe with their own currency had a great advantage over countries that were in the eurozone so this legislation is very welcome.