The ECB is to consider releasing the letter which forced Ireland into a bailout.

The European Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, is formally asking the bank to release a letter which reportedly saw Brian Lenihan being made to ask for help from the Troika.

It is thought that the ECB's then-president, Jean-Claude Trichet, threatened to cut off funding for Irish banks if the Government did not take a bailout programme.

Both the ECB and the Department of Finance have previously refused to release the letter, citing exemptions in the Freedom of Information laws.