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Political agreement was today reached at the Informal Ecofin in Dublin Castle to extend the maturities on the EU element of Ireland's and Portugal’s EU/IMF programme loans. The weighted average maturity limit of these loans will be increased by seven years. This agreement will support Ireland’s and Portugal’s ability to exit their respective programmes by making a full and sustainable return to market financing at competitive rates.

Speaking in Dublin Castle following the decision by European Finance Ministers, Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan stated:

The agreement reached today to lengthen the maturities of Ireland's and Portugal's EFSF and EFSM loans by increasing the weighted average maturity by seven years is a very positive development and marks another significant step on Ireland’s and Portugal's journey to a full and sustainable return to the markets. The return of Programme Countries to the financial markets is a win for Europe as it shows that Europe can resolve the difficulties that we are currently facing.

This decision builds upon the successful conclusion of the on the resolution of the Promissory Note in February and demonstrates the significant progress the Government is making in reducing the burden of both our banking and sovereign debt. The benefit of this strategy can be seen in the successful auction of €5 billion in 10 year bonds in March and means Ireland is well on its way to exiting the EU/IMF Programme on schedule at the end of this year.

Read the full press release

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Read the statement by the Eurogroup and Ecofin Ministers

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