Irish banks may be forced to declare millions of euros of extra losses under surprise plans by Ireland's authorities

The Central Bank of Ireland wants to force its banks to account for poor loans the way they used to under Irish GAAP and over-ride controversial International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
The move, which the central bank said it hoped to announce within weeks, would leave UK banks isolated in their application of IFRS. A similar overhaul in Britain would have a radical impact on the declared capital positions and profits of British banks.
Experts have warned that banks in the UK and Ireland - both of which are governed by the Accounting Standards Board (ASB) - have implemented IFRS in a unique way.
IFRS has been criticised for allowing banks to hide risks because poor loans do not appear until they have failed. The rules, which were introduced in 2005, also allow banks to spread losses across several years rather than recognise immediately.
Ireland's central bank is determined to clean-up the banks' balance sheets in a bid to restore confidence to the shattered sector. The central bank believes that bringing transparency is vital ahead of the €24bn bank recapitalisation programme in July.