Ireland 'in preliminary talks with EU on bailout'

[WestVirginiaRebel]

BBC News:

The Republic of Ireland is in preliminary talks with EU officials for financial support, the BBC has learned.

It is now no longer a matter of whether but when the Irish government formally approaches the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) for a bailout, correspondents say.

The provisional estimate for EFSF loans is believed to lie between 60bn and 80bn euros ($82-110bn; £51-68bn).

Dublin says there are no talks on an application for emergency EU funding.

A spokesman for Ireland's department of finance said the country was funded until the middle of 2011, the public-service RTE broadcaster reported.
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