MPs have welcomed the €200bn state guarantee for inter-bank loans announced by prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende on Monday evening.

The coalition Christian Democrat and Labour parties said it is vital that the government tries to restore confidence in the financial markets. The aim of the measure announced last night is to kick-start the flow of cash between banks.
The guarantee means banks are not taking risks when they lend money to each other.
During a parliamentary debate on the guarantee on Tuesday, MPs called on ministers to provide more information about the deal.
CDA MP Frans de Nerée asked what it meant for foreign banks which were owned by financial services groups based in the Netherlands. ‘What influence will that have on the guarantee?’ he asked during Tuesday’s debate.
And both Labour and Socialist MPs used the debate to again urge the cabinet to tackle the excessive pay packets of bank managers who had contributed to the crisis.
The British government has already made similar moves, ‘so it must be possible,’ Labour MP Paul Tang was quoted as saying by news agency ANP.
Announcing the deal on Monday night, Balkenende said the cash would be available within days.’Nearly all banks, however strong their position, are having trouble with liquidity,’ news agency Reuters quotes Balkenende as saying.
The guarantee comes on top of a €20bn fund the government announced last week to support healthy financial institutions.