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Troika has lent 84pc of Irish bailout

Monday, January 28 14:12:00

Ireland's Troika of bailout lenders today said that it has released E0.8 billion in funds after its latest review with 84pc of the to total of E67.5 billion released under the programme.

The European Commission said it has completed its eighth review of the EU-IMF financial assistance programme for Ireland and has published the technical report by the Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs (ECFIN) which assesses programme implementation by the Irish authorities.

The completion of the review enables a disbursement of E0.8 billion from the European Financial Stability Fund / European Financial Stability Mechanism, bringing total disbursements from the EU, IMF and bilateral partners to E56.6 billion. This represents 84pc of the total international assistance of E67.5 billion available under the programme.

Through EFSF/EFSM, the EU contributes some 60pc of this funding.

The report highlights the fact that Ireland's programme implementation remains on track.

"All fiscal targets have been met and progress on financial sector reform continues apace. Key legislative changes - including new personal insolvency legislation - complement progress on deleveraging and operational restructuring which will bring banks closer to a return to profitability. Furthermore, important structural reforms - including on labour activation and water charging - are underway," it said.

However, the report notes that the policy environment is still challenging, saying that we are spending too much on Irish people's health and noting that we haven't sold off our assets yet.

"On the fiscal side, overruns in the health sector still pose a threat to the consolidation effort, while on the financial side persistent mortgage arrears represent a challenge for banks' return to profitability. Structurally, the increasingly long term nature of unemployment needs to be addressed, along with efforts to open up certain sectors of the economy in order to increase competitiveness. The presence of such risks underscores the importance of continued strong programme implementation."