Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Permanent TSB is an important bank and I hope it plays a significant role on the banking landscape in Ireland for a long time to come. I would like to see the European Commission finalise its consideration of the restructuring plan as quickly as possible. The bank is potentially a very good asset for the State. It has brand recognition, a branch network, a customer base and can provide badly needed competition. When we look at its initiative on current account fees, through which it has attracted 30,000 new customers in recent months, we see an example of what can be done. One of its main problems, as with other banks, is that tracker mortgages are acting as a drag on profitability. I have raised this issue previously, but is it still a live issue that is under consideration between the Minister and the European authorities? Are they trying to see whether some funding stream can be identified to ease the pressure on the banks carrying loss-making tracker mortgages?

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