"The overall amount involved might not seem excessive – around £3.5bn – but only 300,000 people live in Iceland, so that equates to about £40,000 per family. The annual interest alone, if adjusted for population size, would be the equivalent of the UK paying over £40bn a year, almost half the cost of the NHS. Iceland is already just about the most indebted country in the world as a consequence of the crisis. The economy is in dire straits, but stabilising. If the Icesave repayments become too burdensome it may trigger a sovereign default. This means that the UK taxpayer would be unlikely to get reimbursed. Therefore, it is in the best interests of all three governments to come to a reasonable agreement."Jón Daníelsson, professor i ekonomi vid London School of Economics, i The Independent om Icesave-avtalet.
