Resolving the debt burden by October ‘unrealistic’

Ireland’s hopes of agreeing a deal on the lowering of its bank debt burden by the end of October could be an unrealistic target, according to one leading economist.

Dermot O’Leary, chief economist at Goodbody Stockbrokers, said yesterday there are still “significant hurdles to overcome” if Ireland is to succeed in agreeing reductions to its bank debt levels with the EU within the next two months and relieving the burden on taxpayers.

The Government has been vague over its preferred scale of bank debt reduction, but a halving of the €63bn spent on bailing out the banks has been widely speculated upon. The October deadline is a target, given Finance Minister Michael Noonan’s stated desire to reach a successful outcome before the December Budget.