asked the Minister for Finance if he has received any intimation from the British Government that the £1 sterling is to be devalued; and, if not, if he intends to seek a meeting with the Chancellor of the Exchequer to clarify the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Currency Devaluation.
35.
The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative.
As the Deputy is now aware from announcements made, the British Government have decided to allow the £1 sterling to float temporarily. The Chancellor of the Exchequer informed me of this decision.
Did the Minister get advance information from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to that effect?
Contemporaneously.
Will the Minister not agree that the reality is rather more than he describes it as permitting the £ to float and that the reality is devaluation and that this will have an adverse effect on all goods imported into this country?
Emphatically that is not the case.
We shall wait and see. It will be interesting to discover if it means total devaluation or not.
There is a difference between floating the £ and devaluation. This is not devaluation and the Deputy is well aware of that.
Would the Minister not agree that it would be much more apposite to talk about allowing the £ to sink rather than to float? Would not the word "sink" be much more appropriate?
That is not a very constructive supplementary.
36.
asked the Minister for Finance the effect on this country's balance of payments of a 10 per cent devaluation of the £1 sterling by Britain.
The effect on this country's balance of payments of a devaluation of the £1 sterling would depend on the circumstances in which the devaluation took place and the currency or currencies against which sterling would be devalued.
37.
asked the Minister for Finance if he will indicate the nature of the contingency plans to protect Exchequer and departmental funds from the effects of devaluation of any foreign currency.
All Exchequer and departmental funds are held in Irish pounds or in Irish gilt edged securities. They would not, therefore, be affected by devaluation of any foreign currency.