Labour Senator Jimmy Harte has said the announcement today that the loathesome Anglo Promissory note is to be ripped up, is a massive step by this Government towards securing a sustainable solution to our banking and sovereign debt crises.
“Our opponents have variously said either that this deal could never be done, or that it was already done.
“The truth of the matter is that the situation was always much more complex than they acknowledged, and we could not have arrived at a result like today without the patient and painstaking work by Government ministers and their officials, not just in in recent weeks, but since we came into Government,” he said.
He added that Minister Noonan has driven this process and has been supported by his colleagues in the Economic Management Council and in the cabinet.
“I am proud of the role that Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and Minister Brendan Howlin have played in getting us to this point,” he said.
The Donegal politician said he particularly welcomed the fact that €3.1b will not be paid this March and that arrangement covers the repayment of €3.1b made with a Government bond last year.
“Now instead of having to shoulder a massive burden costing the people of Ireland €3.1b every year, we will be reducing our borrowing requirements by €1b every year.
“We have moved from having millstone around our necks to reaching a milestone for this government and for this country as we take a significant step toward regaining control of our own economic and financial destiny,” he said.
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