Don’t mind the pain, just be thankful that the markets are happy

PUTTING INTERNATIONAL FINANCE AHEAD OF THE IRISH PEOPLE

» LE EOIN Ó MURCHÚ

THAT’S THE MESSAGE coming out of the Fine Gael/Labour Government as they pay €1.25billion to international financiers under compulsion from the European Central Bank.

This optimistic message is based on the fact that the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) has been able to reissue Irish short-term bonds at the same punitive rate that is causing Italy and Spain to totter on the edge of bail-out.

But it comes at a time when German Chancellor Angela Merkel is beginning to admit that the austerity programme is failing to solve the Greek crisis - and that failure has big implications for the euro crisis as a whole. She is now openly declaring that only centralised (that is German) control of the currency system can save the euro — but no mention of letting the countries at risk move away from austerity.

By contrast, the IMF is warning that austerity is not only not working but it is making the crisis worse and threatening to drag the whole world economy down with it.

IMF economists have warned that solving the crisis is a marathon, not a sprint. That is it may take 20 years to solve the problem of debt because the only solution is through growth.

Our government, however, remains committed to austerity. They do TALK about growth and job creation but they have no plans for jobs, and there is no ACTION from them in relation to growth.

This is because they are insisting on putting the interests of Europe’s banks ahead of those of the Irish people.

No wonder the markets approve: here is a government that will pay financiers their profits no matter what it costs their own people.

And to assist the process, the Government is turning a blind eye to blatant infringements of workers’ rights, as shown in the La Senza and Vita Cortex scandals.

Of course, they claim to disapprove of the employers’ attempts to renege on their responsibilities to their workforces, but there is no suggestion whatsoever of legislative change to make sure that workers’ rights are guaranteed.

In the meantime, just as they are willing to bail out the German and European banks and international financiers at whatever cost, so the Government will pick up the redundancy tab for companies that rip off their workforce.

It is no surprise, perhaps, that a party of big business like Fine Gael should take this stance . . . but what is Labour doing underwriting it?