McCreevy confident economy will recover

Ireland's EU Commissioner, Charlie McCreevy, says he is confident the Irish economy will rebound from the current crisis.

Mr McCreevy has been blamed for the crisis by some commentators due to his implementation of light-touch regulation in the financial sector.

Speaking to the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Dublin today, he said financial regulators had encouraged the accumulation of unsustainable debt by households, individuals and companies.

However, he said he was confident the Irish economy would recover.

McCreevy also said Irish people should not be ashamed about their rejection of the Lisbon Treaty.

The commissioner admitted that the treaty would have been rejected in most member states if it had been put to a public vote.

He said many EU leaders were glad they had no legal obligation to hold referenda on the treaty in their own countries.