Noonan hints at ECB deal on Anglo

Micheal Noonan, the finance minister, has given the strongest signal yet that a deal with the ECB on massive Anglo debts may be in sight.

With controversy raging over plans to hand over €3.1bn at the end of March as the yearly instalment on the money the previous government borrowed to bail out Anglo and Irish Nationwide, Mr Noonan said negotiations are continuing.

The Government has come under heavy fire from Sinn Féin and the United Left Alliance, with both parties insisting Ireland should refuse to honour the deal.

Mr Noonan refused to say if a deal could be reached before the Mar 31 deadline.

“We are negotiating at present and we will see whether there will be the beginning of a solution at that stage or not, but I am not going to predict that.

“In terms of what’s happening elsewhere in Europe, in terms of what’s happening in Greece, the 31st of March is an awful long time away,” he told TV3.

The Fianna Fáil/Green government wrote a €31bn promissory note — or IOU — to bail out the two crisis-ridden institutions.

Every year, the Government must repay €3.1bn, with the final cost estimated to hit some €47bn over the next 20 years, with interest factored in.

Regarding the ongoing crisis in Greece, Mr Noonan said: “I think we should be very careful about saying about any country can’t stay in the euro.”

He added: “So I see Greece continuing to stay in a strong euro and I think that’s the best solution.”