State’s €187bn liabilities highest ever

The Government’s liabilities have ballooned to €186.7bn — their highest level ever as Moody’s says Ireland is not worthy of a rating above junk.

“Ireland is rightly positioned at the Ba1 rating level,” said Dietmar Hornung, a Moody’s credit analyst.

“Ba1 is a non-investment grade rating, and the negative outlook reflects that we see the risks skewed to the downside.”