23. — (1) The Board may from time to time borrow money, including money in a currency other than the currency of the State, to defray expenditure incurred by it that is properly chargeable to capital F63[and such borrowing may be by whatever means the Board considers appropriate including the creation of stock or other forms of security to be issued, transferred, dealt with and redeemed in such manner and on such terms and conditions as the Board may, F64[with the prior consent of the majority-shareholding Minister, given where the majority-shareholding Minister is not the Minister for Finance with the approval of the Minister for Finance], determine].

(2) The aggregate at any one time either of borrowings under this section, or of such borrowings and any advances under section 22 of this Act, which have not been repaid, shall not exceed F65[€3,000,000,000].

F64[(3) The Board shall not borrow money under this section except with the prior consent of the majority-shareholding Minister given (where the majority-shareholding Minister is not the Minister for Finance, with the approval of the Minister for Finance) having consulted with the Minister, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform and any other Minister of the Government who, in the opinion of the majority-shareholding Minister having regard to the functions of that other Minister, ought to be consulted.]

(4) For the purposes of calculating the amount of borrowings by reference to the limit on principal in subsection (2) of this section the equivalent in the currency of the State of borrowings in a foreign currency shall be calculated at the exchange rate prevailing at the time of the borrowing.

F63[(5) Any security created under subsection (1) of this section shall be deemed to be included amongst the securities in which trustees may invest trust funds under the powers of section 1 (inserted by the Trustee (Authorised Investments) Act, 1958) of the Trustee Act, 1893.]