Bad timing to hamper interest rate talks

VITAL decisions about Ireland’s debt, including lowering the interest rate on the EU/IMF loans, will be taken over the next few weeks — at the worst possible time for the country.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen will attend today’s summit in Brussels and possibly an extra eurozone summit in early March but very much as a lame-duck leader in the dying days of his government.

By the time the new government is in place, they will have less than two weeks before a March 25 summit to argue for a better deal for Ireland and help shape the harsh new demands being made by Germany and other healthy economies.