Karl Whelan: a massive debt-for-equity swap to stave off crisis

Karl Whelan, professor of economics at University College Dublin, has an op-ed piece in the Irish Times today trying to plot a route out of Ireland’s twin banking and sovereign debt crises. Ireland’s banks are now chronically dependent on emergency lending both from the Central Bank of Ireland (CBoI) and the European Central Bank (ECB). Prof Whelan’s proposal is that the

What prospect now of Ireland renegotiating its bailout deal?

It was always apparent that as far as renegotiation of the EU/IMF bailout agreement was concerned, Ireland’s election campaign was conducted in a cosy little bubble, divorced from the real world. “We will seek a mandate from the Irish people to renegotiate a more credible, fairer package that is better for Ireland and Europe,” said Fine Gael in its banking

Grim news from the Central Bank: emergency lending surges again

The Central Bank of Ireland has released its financial statement for February 2011. This is the monthly release which shows, among other things, the level of emergency lending being provided to Ireland’s banks by the Central Bank to enable them to fill holes in their balance sheets left primarily by outflows of deposits.