I hear the Irish government is holding to the position that the 12.5% corporation tax rate is 'non-negotiable'. In other words they are clinging to the right to allow multi-nationals to make huge profits without giving anything back to the country. Looking at the letters in yesterday's 'Irish Times' (by tradition, no champion of nationalism, it must be said) I suspect that a lot of Irish people would be quite happy for the IMF to override the Irish state's 'sovereignty' in this regard if it means that ordinary Irish people have to foot less of the bill.