Protest - Enough Is Enough

Protest - Enough Is Enough, originally uploaded by infomatique.

In March 2010, Central Bank Governor, Patrick Honohan described the crisis as "one of the most expensive banking crises in world history"


On the evening of 21 November 2010, the former Taoiseach Brian Cowen confirmed that Ireland had formally requested financial support from the European Union's European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a request which was welcomed by the European Central Bank and EU finance ministers. The request was approved in principle by the finance ministers of the eurozone countries in a telephone conference call. Details of the financial arrangement were not immediately agreed upon, and remained to be determined in the following weeks, though the loan was believed to be in the region of €100 billion, of which approximately €8 billion was expected to be provided by the United Kingdom.

Following criticism of the action, the Green Party leader John Gormley signalled that his party would seek to have a General Election in January, 2011, with the implicit threat being that they would pull out of Government; with the addition of a number of Independent government TDs declaring that they would not continue to support the Government and speculation mounting, Brian Cowen called a press conference in which he announced that the Government intended to introduce and pass that year's Budget, and its constituent parliamentary bills, before having the 2011 election.

However, on 23 November, rebel members of Brian Cowen's ruling Fianna Fáil party and opposition leaders sought no-confidence vote for the Government and dissolution of the Oireachtas before a crucial budget vote on 7 December 2010, that should open the way for adopting the rescue package.

On November 28, the European Union, International Monetary Fund and the Irish state agreed to a €85 billion rescue deal made up of €22.5 billion from the European Financial Stability Mechanism (EFSM), €22.5 billion from the IMF, €22.5 billion from the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), €17.5 billion from the Irish sovereign National Pension Reserve Fund (NPRF) and bilateral loans from the United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden.

Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker said that the deal includes €10 billion for bank recapitalisation, €25 billion for banking contingencies and €50 billion for financing the budget.
On 6 February 2011 it has been revealed that Ireland had received first €3.6 bilion of the rescue package from the EFSF. This is a slightly higher amount than was previously expected mostly due to the better than expected auction of the EFSF bonds in January 2011.