Lenihan confirms bailout request

Brian Lenihan confirmed today that the Irish government will indeed be applying for a rescue package from the EU and the IMF.

He didn't confirm how much aid Ireland would be applying for, but stated it could be in the 'tens of billions'.

Lenihan believes that the figure will “certainly not” amount to as anywhere near as much as €100 billion, however.

“I will be proposing to my colleagues that they should formally apply for a program," Lenihan told RTE.

“The banks were too big a problem for the country," he continued, "the key issue all the time for the government is to ensure that we do not have a collapse of the banking sector.”

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble indicated on German TV that the size of the bailout has yet to be determined.

"One cannot name a concrete figure at the moment, we are in the middle of consultations. Ireland has applied and now it is being worked on with high priority," Mr Schaeuble told ZDF television.

"If we now find the right answer to the Irish problem, then the chances are great that there will be no contagion effects," he said.

Support

A British treasury spokesman gave a statement reiterating the UK government's support for the bailout.

"The Irish finance minister has indicated that his Government are likely to make a formal request for assistance," the spokesman said.

"As the Chancellor said last week, it is in Britain's national interest that the Irish economy is successful and its banking system is stable, so Britain stands ready to support Ireland in the steps that it needs to take to bring about that stability.

"The UK will be closely involved in discussions on the scale and type of assistance as they develop."

Check out JOE's five examples of implausable deniability, including the denials by government ministers that the EU/IMF bailout was on its way here