Ruairi Quinn

Labour Party spokesman on education and former minister for finance 1994–1997

I think the government had to act when faced with the observations made clearly by the leaders of the two biggest banks. I think the line they've taken – to act in principle rather than wait for one of the banks to go bust – is a positive one. The problem the Labour Party had is that the bill that was brought in is so full of unspecific measures.

[If I were minister for finance] I would have ensured that the Irish taxpayer got some return for taking on the risk that the Irish banks have got themselves into. Again, I'm not a specialist in this area, but people who are making market decisions are walking away from Irish banks big time. And the banks are the authors of their own misfortune, they refused to take the advice of experts.

So I would have looked for a slice of the action, for example an option to purchase shares at today's price over the two years, perhaps between 20-30%. And if they return to their previous value in two years, we would be looking at a significant return to the taxpayer.

To be honest, we just don't know everything that the minister for finance has done or the steps he has taken. He's playing his cards close to his chest, as of course he should do. Of course, we've some sympathy with him, but he could have given some more safeguards in public without necessarily showing his hand. But I would have indicated to the public and Oireachtas that the government would reserve its position on the purchase of shares.

Alan Dukes

Corporate consultant and former minister for finance 1982-1986

I don't think I would have done anything different [if I was in Brian Lenihan's position], but I do think we need certainty on a European basis, and on a worldwide basis, to look at the types of financial instrument the financial sector has devised. These have come back to bite them. The situation was that people on Wall Street were selling instruments they don't understand.

I think the ideal scenario is that only certain products would be authorised in the market in the future, with financial companies required to seek authorisation to sell any new products.

What the government has done here is a pretty bold move... It's a bit of a gamble, definitely, but if it works it shouldn't cost the taxpayer anything, and the reaction [of the markets] has been good so far. So I think it's a good way to do it. There have been complaints by others that this is the Irish government looking after the Irish banks, and they've done it in a way that makes this seem a valid complaint. But if you look at other countries – the UK, USA, Germany, for example – they also look after their banks.

John Bruton

EU Commission ambassador to the US, former minister for finance, 1986-1987

I believe that the banking system is central to the functioning of the economy, and that it rests on mutual confidence and belief. When that mutual confidence and belief is at risk of breaking down, government has a clear right and a responsibility to act. It should do so with the aim of ensuring that the flow of funds through the banking system, that is essential to keep the economy moving, is not halted. Exactly how best to do that is a matter for practical judgement.

Alice Leahy

Director and co-founder of the homeless charity, Trust

Bewildered is probably the word that comes to mind. There has been all this hype and the legislation coming through, and all this fear.

Also, a lot of agencies are wondering how they are going to survive. I think it is a good thing maybe that we are looking at how money is being spent. Because on the one hand, bankers are earning salaries we could never dream of, and on the other hand, agencies are struggling for the money to survive.

I suppose [the bail-out] is in the national interest. The government had to be doing something to instill confidence. But there is something disquieting about the rushed legislation. It is always the poorer in society who are going to suffer. The people we are working with never benefited from the Celtic Tiger, so they are not seeing any difference.

I'd be very concerned because I think at another level, the people who are struggling to run a business, they are not being bailed out. The banks always go after people who owe them money. So I think there is a need for some kind of reasoned debate. There are people out there who are going to suffer. We are already meeting an increasing number of younger Irish men who are homeless.

Michael O'Leary

Chief executive of Ryanair

It was a brilliant move that showed leadership, vision and balls. There is a high prospect of success at very little cost. I doubt the government will have to write a cheque for tuppence. It has echoes of what happened after 9/11 when governments had to step in to provide insurance to keep airlines flying for three or four months. That ended up costing the governments nothing. [The Irish government has provided] a clear way out for European governments and I think it is an inevitability [that other governments will follow suit]. Funds will flood into Irish and Greek banks.

Amanda Pratt

Avoca Handweavers

I feel an awful lot of companies in the world today are simply bent on making money and nothing else. The notion of globalisation creates greed and people who control companies but don't work in them themselves; they demand higher and higher dividends. Avoca has honestly always been about creating a happy, different and positive place for our customers and thankfully, it usually works.

I think the current crisis will separate out companies – I suspect that those who are middle-sized, like us, and grounded in self-ownership and not answerable to international investors, will win out. We've often been contacted by huge companies wanting to buy into our company – if we had succumbed to that we might now be in trouble.

I think bailing out/guaranteeing the banks is extremely important and without that help, businesses cannot hope to operate. Commentators on radio and TV are doing us a disservice by frightening everybody and creating financial panic. There's got to be trust in what Brian Lenihan and Brian Cowen are doing and it's important to work as hard as we can to pull ourselves up out of this.

It's up to the individual to be brave. In the past we've shown ourselves to be a very resilient country and in that respect, I'm delighted to be Irish. It's extremely important to remain positive – our retail and restaurant sales are still up this year and our autumn exports are up by 20%. Export sales for spring 2009 look as if they'll be slightly up too, which is a great relief.

Brody Sweeney

Founder of O'Brien's Sandwich Bars and Fine Gael election candidate in 2007

I believe the banks and the government have acted appropriately – regulation has to be put in place. As a business owner, of course I am worried; we are all worried.

There's a sense of powerlessness watching it on TV but I don't think it's really hit home yet. We're not in the midst of things so far, and a few months down the line, there will be serious job cuts. I do think there's a sense of panic in the media, but that's the Irish way – everything to excess. We had a bigger boom than everyone else and when recession hits there's a deeper, more dramatic impact on the national psyche.

Marian Finnegan

Chief economist, Sherry FitzGerald Group

It is very positive what the government has done. If it hadn't done it, the economy could have been in a very difficult position. But at the same time, it is plugging a hole. For the banks, obviously, they are in a more competitive position than they were at the start of the week. But I'm not anticipating a dramatic return to liquidity. I think certain banks, if not all banks, are obviously in difficulty. So the opportunity to recapitalise is excellent for the property market. But it is not going to happen overnight; it will take time. It will have a gradual impact.

David Begg

General secretary of Ictu

One accepts this through gritted teeth. It seems that the liquidity problem in the banks was deteriorating, and in those circumstances, the government had no option but to act.

But it is irritating, to say the least, that those people who have been acting irresponsibly over the last number of years now stand to be bailed out. These people were trading in exotic financial instruments, were under-pricing risk and spreading risk.

Most of this activity was goaded by large incentive payments and one of the problems with the bail-out is that it is rewarding that risk. It makes it self-perpetuating. We told the minister last Monday [just before the bail-out was announced] that whatever he was considering with the banks, it would have to stand the test of fairness.

Natalie O'Toole

Head of fundraising at Trócaire

The real threat that the banking crisis is posing on an international level is the increase in global food prices. Donations that we get will buy less resources, as food is now costing three times as much as it was. Having said that, at Trócaire we are optimistic that people in Ireland who are tightening their belts will now be more considerate of those who really have nothing and are in need of basics such as food and shelter. So from that perspective we can say that it won't necessarily mean that people will stop giving to people in need.

James Doorley

Chairman of the Consumers' Association

Although this is not a time to be laying blame, I think there's a need to take a look at the regulation and the real reasons that the banks had to be bailed out. The concern now is that the cost of all this is going to be passed down to the Irish consumer in the form of higher taxes, and more worrying is the fact that the current legislation allows the regulator to approve these increases, which should under no circumstances be allowed. I think the Consumer Protection Code needs to be re-evaluated – it's not adequately defined as to how exactly the Irish consumer is protected. There are many ordinary people who will be affected and who – unlike the banks – won't be bailed out. And I think that's resulting in an atmosphere of real unease among the general public.

The needs of society as a whole now need to be considered, and not just those of people at the top, and banks need to return the favour that the government has done them so that the public are given a lifeline too.

Richard Boyd Barrett

Socialist Workers' Party member and founder of People Before Profit Alliance

Of course the state had to act, but the question is why did politicians allow such greed to flourish in the first place? Because of the nature of the situation there is no guarantee things will change as a result and no guarantee that the solution will not just be a temporary one. There is still every likelihood that banks will go on and repossess homes with taxpayers' money as was the case with Northern Rock.

If the state is going to intervene, then the banking system must benefit society as a whole instead of being a drive for profit at the expense of mortgage holders. There has to be a reappraisal of the government's priorities. A banking system is necessary for any society, but the issue is how the savings themselves are going to be managed. We should now be talking about banks in terms of public ownerships. Society needs to decide democratically where funds are going to be invested and for what purposes money will be lent. The issue of optimism or pessimism at this stage is irrelevant unless we address this, but I would say we are facing a bleak period for the ordinary people of Ireland.

Declan Ganley

Founder of Libertas and chairman of Rivada Networks

I think it was the only thing that could be done, given the circumstances. We could get into how it is we got to this stage, but the fact is we are here. I think it was absolutely the right thing to do... It was the least worst option. Is it still going to be difficult? Yes, but it might be a little less painful than it could have been. I do think the timeframe should have been tighter, there should have been a tighter time limit [to the guarantee]. It will be interesting to see how many rules [the EU] will say we've broken. There will be a big play on this… they will classify it as an unfair distortion of the market. My response to that will be: 'Tough'. Europe wasn't getting its act together quickly enough. We had to act fast and we did, and we could not have done if we had said yes to the Lisbon Treaty. We would have surrendered a lot of our remaining flexibility which we have to act in times of crisis.

Larry Broderick

General secretary Irish Bank Officials Association

We'd give a cautious welcome to the government's intervention on the basis that the liquidity problems in parts of the financial services sector were not only threatening the interests of customers and staff but were also likely to result in substantial difficulties in the wider economy.

This week's events are likely to result in significant changes in the structure of banking in Ireland. Stronger regulation and more transparent governance of the financial institutions should be introduced in order to restore public confidence and to minimise the risk to taxpayers in underwriting what is in effect an insurance scheme.

We would also hope that a common understanding could emerge on a new culture in banking – based on a return to what might be called the traditional values of prudence, integrity and long-term stability.

We are also determined to ensure that in whatever restructuring of the sector is required, due care and attention is given to the interests of the many thousands of staff working in the financial services sector who have made a substantial contribution to the profitability of these institutions in return for modest rewards.