Andrews responds to opposition EU loan concerns

Minister for Children Barry Andrews has tonight responded to concerns from the Labour party with regards to the legal status of the EU-IMF loan agreement with Ireland.

Mr Andrews confirmed that the agreement meets all legal requirements.

"I want to assure people that the Loan Facility Agreements and the Memos of Understanding (MoUs) under the EU-IMF joint programme for Ireland are not an international agreement for the purposes of Article 29.5 and 29.6 of the Constitution,” said Mr Andrews.

“The nature of the Loan Facility Agreement for the European Financial Stability Mechanism specifically derives from Council Regulation EU No. 407/2010 under which Ireland can request financial assistance. Under this regulation Ireland is provided a facility to draw down certain monies in the future. It provides the terms of a facility under which Ireland can choose to draw down monies on those terms. The same legal position applies with respect to the European Financial Stability Facility agreed with the other Euro zone Member States.

“Our European partners and the IMF have set out the terms by which they will make the monies available. It is up to Ireland to meet those terms or not to avail of the monies available. A future Government is not obliged to avail of any draw down. Accordingly, future executive action of a Government is not fettered nor is the legislative freedom of the Oireachtas. Furthermore, the Government is free to seek monies from a different source, including the market, if it does not wish to avail of the facility.”