The Minister for Finance will ask French finance minister Christine Lagarde her position on corporation tax if she becomes the nominee as head of the IMF, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said.
Independent TD Shane Ross had asked the Taoiseach to consider opposing Ms Lagarde’s nomination because she her “record is so hostile to Ireland”.
Mr Ross said that in the wake of the successful visits of Queen Elizabeth and US President Barack Obama to Ireland would Mr Kenny not have more “confidence” in his dealings with EU institutions.
Ms Lagarde is considered frontrunner for the job and Mr Ross said that by supporting her nomination Ireland would be “supporting the movement of someone who is aggressive against Ireland as are most of the European powers who protect the banks there, into a position of power of a benign lender, which is the IMF”.
The Dublin South TD said that “if we support someone who is so hawkish against us we will be cornering ourselves”.
Mr Kenny, stressing that Ireland had not yet made a decision, added that “it’s fair to say that the French minister for finance articulates what the view of the French government might be. That’s not to say that were she to be appointed by the IMF that she would continue to press French government policy.”
He added that “obviously IMF policy is very different or might be very different from individual governments’ policy”.
Mr Ross then asked the Taoiseach if before he made a decision on Ireland’s position that he would “ask Madame Lagarde what her position would be on corporation tax and her position on the reduction on our interest rate” on international loans.
Mr Kenny said Minister for Finance Michael Noonan was in regular contact with Ms Lagarde and “in the event that she becomes the nominee or the person who may well be appointed to the IMF her views in respect of corporation tax” would be discussed by her self and Mr Noonan.