bailout

As most regular readers will know, I'm a keen observer of what goes on over in Ireland.

But I'm not entirely surprised at the country's near financial meltdown. I lived in Ireland at the apex of the "Celtic Tiger" economic boom of early noughties and the place was awash with money and prosperity for the first time in the country's long and turbulent history.

However, as an outsider looking in, I always wondered what would happen once huge fiscal support from the EU dried up as new member countries joined the Union?

The result has been catastrophic. During the good times, I suppose no one could blame the flood of money used by the government for all sorts of weird and wonderful projects. It's just a tragedy no one decided to put a little away in case things went tits up.

I used to ask folk over there what would happen when the bubble bursts and they usually gave me blank, uncomprehending faces. They're probably still wondering what the hell to do now?

I can't agree with the mass of criticism against the U.K Government putting £7 billion into the coffers for the Irish bailout package. In one of the few times I'll ever agree with this coalition fiasco, we're protecting our interests in Ireland. So much of the U.K economy is paired with our Irish neighbours that not to help them out is tantamount to lunacy.

On a purely local level, most of the U.K's trade with Ireland goes between Liverpool and Dublin. So think of folk's livelihoods in our twin cities before anything else.