Banking meltdown 'home-made' in crucial ways, reports find

The two reports into the banking crisis have concluded that Brian Cowen's 2007 Budget added markedly to the overheating of the economy, and that Mr Cowen introduced excessive government spending.

Ireland’s banking meltdown was a result of “home-made” decisions rather than the global economic crisis, a damning report by international experts declared today.

Former International Monetary Fund officials investigating the lead-up to the Irish crash said the Government’s Budgets during the boom years left the country vulnerable.