Tomás Ó Flatharta

There was a frisson of hope and defiance yesterday afternoon when RTE produced the report below on its website.

Was the Government or at least the Labour Party component, without which the Coalition will fall, changing tack in its dealings with the ECB, would unilateral action be on the table after all unless there was some movement on the part of the ECB, has the Government received tacit approval for a plan which it was sure it could deliver?

Sadly for those who waited up until 11pm last night to see The Week In Politics and the full interview and its context – available on RTE’s player here from 24:40 –  it seems that nothing has changed. The Labour Minister for Communications Energy and Natural Resources, Pat Rabbitte said that the €3.1bn payment that fell due in 2012 had not been paid. And he indeed did say that the payment…