I agree with the Taoiseach on one point. Plenty of clarity and certainty has been introduced. The clarity and certainty is that the Government has utterly surrendered to the IMF and EU. They know that, we know that and everybody knows that. "Default" is, apparently, the word that cannot be mentioned in this Chamber.

Is the Taoiseach happy that the greatest cheerleaders for his policy and for the statements coming from his side of the House are Fianna Fáil? His support is coming from the previous Government. Very few people can see the difference, if there is any, between this Government and the previous one in their attitudes to the banks, despite all the those promises. That is the great disappointment for those of us who have been observing this for a long time.

The Taoiseach cannot paint the opposition to Government policies as something coming from the technical group and Sinn Féin. Does the Taoiseach read the Lex column in the Financial Times? It will tell him that people out in the market think Ireland is being governed by people who do not understand markets. Let me read four lines from the Lex column of last Saturday:

In the Irish case senior bondholders have been given a blank cheque by Irish taxpayers, the result of an Irish Government decision in late 2008. No other Government is likely to make that mistake.

Another Government has made that mistake. The Taoiseach's Government has done so, by wearing the clothes of the Government of Brian Cowen. Why do senior bondholders have to be treated in the same way as deposit holders? They are a completely different creature. Senior bondholders make a decision, take a risk and make an investment. Depositors take their money to a bank with no sophisticated investment techniques or knowledge and put their money in the bank to be safeguarded. There is an issue of trust against an issue of investment.

Yet we are saying we rank them pari passu and they should never be stung. The logic of this is that the Irish taxpayer must pay for the senior bondholders. The article in Lex column, which is a market-led column, states that senior bondholders are the luckiest people in Europe and that they cannot believe their luck at the current Irish Government pursuing identical policies to those of the last Government in terms of insisting on paying them when no other Government in the world would do so.

A man of Deputy Ross's capabilities and intelligence will understand that the policies are not the same. The Government has not made a mistake; it has made a decision, namely, to reduce the number of dysfunctional banks and to create two pillar banks which will be the bulwark in terms of where we go from here. This differs from the position taken by the last Government. It is a decision which brings clarity and certainty to the Irish banking sector. It is a matter of fact that commentators must comment. The Lex column is not the sovereign Government of this country. Unfortunately, because of the constraints placed on the people of this country as a result of the IMF-EU deal, the options available to the new Government were limited. However, one must make decisions. The Government made a decision which will ensure clarity and certainty in the banking sector. In discussions with the European Central Bank, it provided certainty in respect of ongoing liquidity into the Irish banks. That is important. I accept it is not the end result in terms of where we want to be, which is, in a position to say goodbye to the IMF in terms of the deal and to return to the bond markets, thus regaining control of our economic destiny. Given the obstacles in our way, difficult decisions will have to be taken into the future. We must rebuild the nature of our relationship with many of our European counterparts and we are working to do so. The space now provided allows for this to happen.

Deputy Ross will be aware that there have been significant contributions from subordinated bondholders. The point was made at least week's press conference that there is a clear difference between senior bondholders in Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide Building Society and those in the pillar banks, namely, Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland. The Government was clear in terms of its pronouncement in this regard.

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. I would have thought a man of the Taoiseach's intelligence and knowledge would be aware of the serious dangers of setting up two major banks of that sort. The Taoiseach and I am sure everyone else in the House will remember what happened when Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland dominated the market in the past, namely, they ran a cartel or, at least, a duopoly which is the reason they have become the tyrants of the financial system here. By retreating into that position the Taoiseach is inviting them to regain the type of territorial strength they had in the past, thus being in a position once again to crucify the consumer in order to gain increased bank profits. Is the Taoiseach happy with that?

Should we keep another bank going?

The consumer is being well crucified now.

The Government, as part of its programme for Government, will move on to the issues that need to be addressed in respect of governance of the Irish banking sector. Clearly, changes are needed. I am sure Deputy Ross is aware that foreign-owned banks located here will provide competition and certainty within the sector. Deputy Ross may also be aware that many international commentators are now looking with some degree of confidence at the decisions made by the Government in terms of bringing clarity and certainty to the banking sector. That is important. We are no longer proceeding on a path of confusion.

Deputy Ross will be aware that people in this country like to be told the scale of the problem. From this point of view, the people understand the constraints and difficulties of government. Governments must make decisions on how to proceed rather than just comment. In this regard, the Government has brought clarity and certainty to the banking sector. We must now move on to discussions in regard to the interest rate on the IMF-EU deal and other costs associated with that structure.

It is important to understand that what we are seeking from Europe is not more but less money with greater flexibility to achieve the same target. The Government is concentrating on providing a jobs initiative programme which it will publish in due course. This initiative will provide opportunities and incentives to stimulate our indigenous economy, thus providing that much needed sense of confidence and hope for job creation and allowing employers to recruit labour and getting our country moving. Other countries have moved on; their recession is over. We face an enormous range of difficulties. Courage is needed if we are to move forward in accordance with the programme for Government.