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Home Page > News > Sinn Fein group walk out of Parliament over failure to discuss Anglo Irish bail out

Sinn Fein group walk out of Parliament over failure to discuss Anglo Irish bail out

Eamon Gilmore criticized action over $961 million payment

HILDA HIGGINS,

IrishCentral Staff Writer

Published Thursday, November 3, 2011, 8:19 AM

Updated Thursday, November 3, 2011, 9:24 AM

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Sinn Fein

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Sinn Fein and United Left Alliance TDs walked out of Ireland’s Dail (Parliament) protesting the Government’s refusal to debate the $961 million (€700m) payment to Anglo bondholders.

Tanaiste (Vice Prime Minister) Eamon Gilmore said they had failed to come up with any alternative remedies.

During the Dail session Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny defended the payment. He said a failure to honor this debt would hamper Ireland’s efforts to get a $13.7 billion (€10bn) interest rate reduction in the future. He also blamed the European Central Bank (ECB) for failing to allow Ireland to burn the Anglo bondholders.

He said he blames the previous government for negotiating this deal. Kenny said he has “no intention” of turning the country into “some kind of sub-Saharan state based on reckless decisions” by defaulting on this payment.
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The Taoiseach said “We are not going to scuttle this ship.”

He continued “I’d love to stand up here and say to you that it’s not necessary to pay this money. It has not been possible for this government to unravel the agreement made by your government with external parties.”

Sinn Fein’s President Gerry Adams said he would not stay in the Dail if there was no debate.

Following the Parliamentary session Gilmore told the Irish Examiner “They’re offering no alternatives…The reality here is that we have a serious difficulty.

"As a country, we are working to renegotiate the terms of the arrangements that were entered into by the last Government – that’s not something that can be done overnight."

Independent TD Shane Ross said the government had a choice over what to do but had “decided to go down exactly the same road as was went down by the last government”.

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19 Comments

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seanomelbourne | Nov 06, 2011, 06:44 PM EST

gobdawpaddy your first sentence should read "... and improve your standard of english".That bloody glass house is full of gobsh.tes and plastic Irish morons.

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gobdawpaddy | Nov 06, 2011, 06:34 PM EST

Peter, you are really going to have to educate yourself and improve your standard of the english language. When you post on this website you are representing the Irish contributors here. You can't always be seen as backward.

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sirpeter | Nov 06, 2011, 03:34 PM EST

Gobshite. You're full of bullsh*t as usual.Did I ever tell you about the time I got food poisoning in New York?I was doing cartwheels in the toilet wondering which end was going to spew next for 24 hours.I guess most Americans sell contaminated food.But I guess (not all)What I do know for sure is Americans have an idiot issue.Seeing that you live over there along with Georgy Boy.

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gobdawpaddy | Nov 06, 2011, 07:06 AM EST

Audrey, no clue what George's experience might have been but my experience's in Ireland are evidence to me that Irish people in general (not all) have issues with hygeine. On a recent trip I observed a bartender eating her nails and then picking up a scone to serve to a customer. I outlined part of my 'dirty' Irish hospital experience below, appalling.

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FallsRNat | Nov 05, 2011, 04:22 PM EDT

i bet they claimed their attendence allowance for that day.

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audreybolton | Nov 05, 2011, 01:04 PM EDT

Hilda and Niall, I think George Dillon just goes on this site to annoy Irish people because he had a bad experience when he lived in Dublin apparently.Our hospitals and schools,despite the shortage of money and staff at the moment are NOT DIRTY. I speak from personal experience. What's this story about a toilet seat? George is the same about all things Irish, he dosen't like the Irish Army either (of which I am a member). SO JUST IGNORE HIM!

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GeorgeDillon | Nov 05, 2011, 08:09 AM EDT

One of the most dangerous places to be in Ireland--a hospital. But if you have to be hospitalized, let's hope you can be placed in a "virtual ward". That's a trolley in a corridor, by the way. Much better than the standard Irish hospital accommodation--a toilet seat.

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sirpeter | Nov 04, 2011, 07:12 PM EDT

Bilgegate has never ever been an honest broker in Irish affairs.His contempt for everything Irish is very transparent.It's lucky he doesn't make sense.Even his school boy bully analogy is incorrect.FG & Labour are in power and they are the people who can BULLY legislation through and also decide the agenda.As in the school yard the best form of protest is to just walk away.Sinn Fein is exactly the opposition that we need at the moment.Bilgegate doesn't really know why he's against everything Irish.Like the Unionists his Daddy told him to be.

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sirpeter | Nov 04, 2011, 06:40 PM EDT

They have a right to walk out.Nobody here knows for sure if the bail out plan is the correct way to go or not.This is why I vote for Sinn Fein.They bring things to the attention of the public.It forces the government to be more careful in their decision making.

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merefalow | Nov 04, 2011, 09:33 AM EDT

something stinks here,why cant it be re negosiated,and brought out into the open?why cant they explain why these negosiations were arrived at,whats to hide,demand transparency,

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MacGiobuinR | Nov 03, 2011, 08:17 PM EDT

The government should have had some floor debate on this issue, especially in the light of the fiasco in Greece. Instead of walking out of the Dail Sinn Fein should have held fast to their seats and continue to maintain a presence on the floor. Walking out always leaves your opponents in charge of things, and that is never good. Slainte!

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seanomelbourne | Nov 03, 2011, 06:40 PM EDT

The united left alliance and Sinn Fein exercised their democratic right to walk out in protest.The government muzzled debate on the bail out plan exercising their right under parliamentary standing orders,this is how parliamentary democracies work.Towngate posted on the 25th. of October that "Pearse was a visionary,had leadership qualities,a racist,a traitor and a fantasist".Towngates is not an honest broker in this debate and I find this disappointing.

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Towngate | Nov 03, 2011, 06:16 PM EDT

That's it lads! ... such statesmanlike behaviour! ...Still, after your kicking in the Aras election, when you barely got the SF vote out - ye may as well keep on walking ... The Dail is not a playground for schoolyard bullies!

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RedBranch | Nov 03, 2011, 12:38 PM EDT

Keep on walking and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

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jamieLM | Nov 03, 2011, 11:34 AM EDT

@gobdawpaddy, as an RN I'm shocked that basic hygiene practices were not followed in the hospital you went to. Old or new, hospitals need to be responsible in seeing that all of their personnel working in them are in compliance with vital hygiene standards to prevent the spread of disease. This is true of hospitals and clinics in every country.

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