Britain could face £10bn bill to bail out Irish economy. Thanks To Cowen And His CRONIES!

British taxpayers could be left with more than £10billion of debt to bail out the Irish economy.

Ireland is holding talks about a £70billion EU rescue deal, and the UK will have to underwrite 10 per cent of any losses - around £7billion.

Royal Bank of Scotland is also under threat since the state-owned bank has £53billion of exposure to Irish loans, more than £40billion of which are underwritten by British taxpayers.

The International Monetary Fund warned last week that if the Irish economy hits the skids, the bank, which is 84 per cent owned by taxpayers, would probably have to write off problem debts of £4.3billion.

That would send the cost to British families soaring by another £3billion if Ireland cannot pay its debts.

The Dublin government is understood to have held 'preliminary' discussions with the EU about an aid package after fears grew at the weekend about its levels of debt.

The EU wants Ireland to accept emergency funding but it is thought the loans will come with strings that will effectively dilute its sovereignty.

And last night Treasury officials in London confirmed that Britain was prepared to help out because Ireland is a key economic partner.

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