Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senators for their thoughtful contributions, from both Government and Opposition benches. It is important to recall the challenging context in which many countries currently find themselves. The global economy and international trade have been tested by the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. These events have required a substantial response by governments and policymakers, exhausting resources and challenging debt sustainability in many countries. They have also served as catalysts for the current cost-of-living crisis, which has hit the most vulnerable the hardest and pushed an additional 71 million people in the developing world into poverty. As a result, governments around the world have come under sustained pressure to protect the living standards of the poorest and most vulnerable. However, in many countries, fiscal buffers have been severely depleted by the Covid-19 response, weakening resilience to future economic shocks.

As we face an increasingly uncertain future, it is imperative that the IMF has the necessary resources to assist members beset by multiple or prolonged shocks. This Bill, by providing for Ireland's adherence to the NAB and empowering the Minister to make grant contributions up to a total of €325 million to IMF trust funds, allows Ireland to play our part in fortifying the fund, thereby securing its ability to respond to future crises and to channel critical support to those countries that need it the most. I commend it to the House.