Real talking on our debt is still ahead

An initial step. That was the way the Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, portrayed the deal to replace the cash payment due from the exchequer on the banking promissory note with a long-term bond.

The government is switching an immediate cash payment for a longer-term liability and, given the shortage of cash and the challenges of trying to get back into the financial markets, this was worth doing.

The fact that the deal ...