IRELAND’S “UNILATERAL” bank guarantee of September 2008 was the trigger for subsequent EU-level actions to preserve Continent-wide financial stability, according to Joaquin Almunia, EU commissioner for competition.

Speaking to an audience of bankers in Dublin yesterday, the Spaniard repeated criticisms he made earlier in the week of the guarantee. Among other things, Mr Almunia said that it had limited the “margin for manoeuvre to seek burden-sharing from senior bondholders”.

In a more veiled criticism, he said the EU countries played as a team in responding to the crisis “most of the time”.

Mr Almunia was blunt in his criticism of Ireland’s banks. Speaking at a subgroup of the Irish Banking Federation yesterday, he said: “Ireland’s financial woes originated in excessive and careless lending by the Irish banks to the commercial real estate sector.”

He went on to say that banking sectors could not be allowed reach a size “disproportionate” to the economies in which they operated. In Ireland’s case the “economy needs smaller, more robust and more prudent institutions”.

He said that another factor in the crisis was a failure of the State regulator to assess risk in “traditional” lending.

In the future, Mr Almunia warned that the creation of two pillar banks will “create a de facto duopoly”.

He said Irish and EU authorities would have to work to ensure consumers enjoyed the benefits of competition in the sector.

Mr Almunia’s competition directorate-general is among the most powerful in the European Commission. Among other things, it vets aid given by states to commercial enterprises, which is prohibited for the most part in the EU. When aid is given, it is subject to strict conditions.

In the aftermath of the outbreak of the financial crisis in September 2008, the state aid rules were temporarily suspended for the financial services industry as governments scrambled to prevent their banking systems collapsing.

Now, those banks that received state aid are being restructured so that they do not have an unfair competitive advantage over unaided banks.

The commission has a veto over all restructurings and continues to play a central role in the ongoing restructuring of Irish banks.

Mr Almunia noted yesterday that governments in the 27- member bloc had given €2,000 billion to financial institutions since 2008, and even more had been made available.

He described the figures as “staggering”.

Ireland’s bank bailout has been by far the most expensive in the EU, the commissioner stated, reaching 33 per cent of gross domestic product.

The Netherlands has had the second most expensive bank rescue, at 6.6 per cent of GDP, he added.

Belgium and the UK suffered costs of 5.4 per cent and 4.4 per cent respectively.

Mr Almunia praised the European Central Bank’s reaction to the three-year-old crisis, describing it as “outstanding”.

The commissioner also expressed his admiration for the Government and the Irish people for “tightening their belts” and showing “discipline”.

Tragic Gerry left entire €1.3m estate to ex-wife Morah

RTE star Gerry Ryan left his entire estate to his wife Morah.

His assets are worth more than €1.3m, but how much Morah will inherit from the estate is uncertain and a detailed schedule of her late husband's assets are unknown.

Mr Ryan, who died after taking cocaine in April last year, made his last will and testament on November 13, 1992.

He did not change his will after he separated from Morah, the mother of his five children and his wife of 26 years.

Documents lodged in the probate office give a current value for his estate of €1,333,921.

No further details of Mr Ryan's estate are outlined in the documents -- which are publicly available -- though it is believed the family home on Castle Avenue, Clontarf, Dublin, makes up most of its value. It is not known what other assets, if any, were in Mr Ryan's name.

The five-bedroom house, which the couple bought in the mid-1990s, is believed to be worth €850,000.

Three separate mortgages were taken out on the property over eight years, during which time the house was extended. It is not known if the mortgages have been paid off.

split

The Land Registry shows no evidence of other property in the broadcaster's name.

He and Morah confirmed in March 2008 that they had split after 26 years of marriage. The couple had five children Lottie (24), Rex (21), Bonnie (18), Elliot (13) and Babette (10).

Mr Ryan later began a relationship with Melanie Verwoerd, a former South African ambassador to Ireland and Unicef Ireland chief.

The revelations about his last will and testament come just over a year after the broadcaster was found dead at his apartment on Upper Leeson St in Dublin on April 30, 2010.

An inquest later heard that cocaine use was likely to have triggered the cardiac arrhythmia which caused his death.

Ms Verwoerd was not invited to the church service which marked the anniversary of his death last month.

"My children and I have not received an invite to the Mass. I wish to commemorate Gerry in my own personal way and have made arrangements to do so privately," she said.

Take That: The boys are back in town

THERE will be no recession in Dublin this weekend thanks to two performances by pop giants Take That.

Thousands of fans are descending on the capital for Take That's highly anticipated concerts both tonight and tomorrow, and local businesses are bracing themselves for a huge boom.

Just about every hotel room in the capital has been booked out, Irish Rail has been forced to add on extra trains to accommodate those travelling from other parts of the country and nightclubs have beefed up security to cope with the huge numbers expected to attend.

According to the Irish Hotel Federation's website, there is only one hotel room left in Dublin, the penthouse in the Gresham Hotel, which will set you back a cool €2,000.

And Irish Rail has announced the addition of more Intercity, DART and Commuter trains for tonight and tomorrow to cope with the 160,000 ticket holders attending this weekend.

Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams arrived in Dublin early yesterday afternoon and were busy in rehearsals all day, before returning to the Four Seasons Hotel to rest up ahead of tonight.

As first revealed by the Herald, they have booked the entire top floor of the exclusive hotel for both nights.

Although Take That's 2009 Circus tour was also an incredible hit, this year marks their first tour with Robbie Williams in 15 years.

And despite Robbie's panic-filled performance in Croker in 2006, insiders say that they are more prepared than ever to give their fans the show of a lifetime.

Robbie recently revealed: "It was really f***ing scary. Croke Park was waiting for me. I couldn't understand what was happening to me or my body."

But a source put fans' fears at ease and said: "They have done their shows in Manchester and Cardiff and everything seems to be going fine."

In order to accommodate the boys' various different chart success over the years, they will be kicking off as a quartet, with Robbie Williams later taking to the stage to perform some of his solo hits and then finish off as a quintet.

The Pet Shop Boys will be opening tonight and are expected to take to the stage at 7.30pm.

Although Take That spent the majority of their day in soundcheck yesterday, Howard and girlfriend Katie Halil found the time to meet Irish rugby hunk Rob Kearney and his actress girlfriend Susie Amy for dinner at posh restaurant Shanahan's on the Green last night.

Susie jetted into Dublin yesterday alongside a female friend in order to catch up with her beau and will be attending the concert tonight.

Despite the fact that a string of celebrities is expected to descend on the home of GAA tonight, fashionistas face a challenge with the rainy weather predicted for this evening.

Concert promoters MCD are warning ticketholders to dress appropriately, and reminded concert goers that umbrellas will not be permitted.

Family demand inquiry into Rachel's freezing flat death 

The family of Rachel Peavoy -- the mother of two who died from hypothermia in her council flat -- have increased their pressure on the Government to hold a public inquiry into Rachel's death.

Her two children, Leon (8) and Warren (12), took part in a group protest outside the offices of Dublin City Council in Ballymun yesterday, a short distance from the complex where the 30-year-old mother died.

Rachel was found dead in the flat in January 2010 and both friends and family say there are issues which need to be answered in a public forum.

Her family have already disagreed with Dublin City Coroner, Dr Brian Farrell, who found that Rachel died of hypothermia but recorded a verdict of death by misadventure at her inquest.

In a heartrending letter, published by the Herald, Rachel had made a desperate plea to housing officials to fix her heating or move the family for the sake of her two boys.

"I feel that I should not be left in this, but also feel like I am not being listened to (by Dublin City Council)," she wrote. "I have no heating and was only recently told they can't fix this problem. I feel it is necessary to break out of this environment for myself and my boys."

Her family say she had made a number of attempts to get rehoused due to an absence of heating. However, Dublin City Council has insisted that the heating was working in her flat at the time.

Yesterday, Catherine Greene, a friend of Ms Peavoy, said they had been meeting with TDs in an attempt to lobby for a public inquiry in the Dail.

She said some issues needed to be examined, such as the testimony of witnesses, in a separate public hearing.

Leonita Peavoy, a sister of Rachel, said the family are still "upset and shocked" 18 months after her death and the two children are now in her care.

Sinn Fein TD Dessie Ellis supports the call for an inquiry and believes that the coroners' report was not sufficient.

"I think the family are entitled to a full explanation," he said. "We need to take everything in account, the circumstances of everything that happened to her."

A spokesman for the council has refused to comment on the call for the inquiry or the continued protests.

"They have the right to protest and that is their prerogative," he said. "The coroner has returned his determination into the case and we have co-operated fully with him."

A spokesman for Housing Minister Willie Penrose said they had not received any request for an inquiry into the death of Ms Peavoy.