Each citizen of Ireland now owes a debt of €17,000 to save the banks. Problems like this could easily happen in a number of other countries. This really shows yet again why the industry needs to be regulated and watched. If left on their own they will line their pockets and stick everyone else with the bill. Bankers of mass wealth destruction.

Europe’s debt crisis deepened on Thursday night as Ireland was forced into another €24bn (£21bn) rescue of its banking system and jittery financial markets pushed Portugal closer to a bailout.

In a furious attack on the previous government, the Irish finance minister Michael Noonan said the country had been left with “an appalling legacy: a legacy of debt, of unemployment, of emigration, of falling living standards and of low morale” as a result of the banking crisis.

After stress tests to assess the vulnerability of the banks to a drastic worsening of the economy, Noonan announced that the government would take a majority stake in all the major lenders. These are to be radically reduced in size and focused on just two players.