The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Batt O'Keeffe, has said the Government was not under pressure to apply for a bail out from the European Union's emergency fund.
Speaking on RTE’s This Week, Mr O'Keeffe said the Government was confident that Ireland could manage the economy and achieve its targets, and it was not going to give over to anyone else - what he called - Ireland's very hard-won sovereignty.
Mr O’Keefe said Ireland was well financed up to the middle of next year and also has a pension reserve fund of €25 bn.
He added that the International Monitory Fund clearly stated two days ago that it believed that Ireland can manage its own affairs
Mr O’Keefe’s comments came after the Department of Finance had to again insist last night that Ireland is not already involved in talks on an application for emergency EU funding.
The BBC, Reuters news agency and international finance website Bloomberg.com have reported that talks on an EU bailout have taken place.
One report on Bloomberg claims European central banks put pressure on the Irish Central Bank to seek a bail-out during a midday conference call.
The BBC and Reuters claimed Ireland was seeking a bail-out in the region of €45 to €90 billion.
The head of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss Kahn, has said Ireland can manage its economy on its own.
Speaking on the sidelines of an Asia Pacific summit in Japan, Mr Strauss Kahn said Ireland's difficulties had been principally caused by one bank and were very different from those of Greece whose economy faced deep-seated problems.
