O'Keeffe: Ireland must not be muscled into deal with EU/IMF

A Fianna Fáil TD has lashed out at the Government and accused it of "poor decision-making" and of having "a total lack of vision" in the management of the nation’s finances.

In a statement issued tonight Deputy Ned O'Keeffe said: "Ireland must not be muscled and rushed into a debt deal by the power brokers of the ECB and IMF."

Deputy O'Keeffe said Ireland's negotiators must not be coerced into a deadline that suits Europe and not Ireland.

He added that the country's negotiators "don't have the skills, the experience or the confidence of the Irish people" to negotiate on Ireland's behalf with the ECB and IMF.