Ireland unveils deal to trim bank bailout costs
Ireland unveils deal with ECB to trim bank-bailout costs, extend repayments to 2053
DUBLIN (AP) -- Ireland has announced an agreement with the European Central Bank to drastically overhaul repayment of its colossal bank-bailout costs.
The country's costs will be reduced by €20 billion ($26 billion) over the coming decade, with repayments extended until 2053.
Prime Minister Enda Kenny won applause from lawmakers Thursday as he announced the breakthrough after more than a year of negotiations with ECB governors in Frankfurt. The move came hours after an all-night emergency session of parliament ended with votes to dissolve one of the government-owned "bad banks" in favor of the new debt-repayment arrangements.
"In effect, we have replaced a short-term, high-interest-rate overdraft that had to be paid down quickly through more expensive borrowings, with long-term, cheap, interest-only loans," Kenny said.
