Arthur Spring (Kerry North-West Limerick, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It was mentioned that if one keeps a certain amount of money in a current account, one will not be subject to bank charges. As a former banker, I am quite aware of what is really meant in this regard. The Irish banks must have an enormous number of current accounts containing sums above the threshold. Obviously, they are able to attract interest on these by putting them on the inter-bank market nightly. They make profits on the back of them. There is no mechanism that I am aware of in any of the banks dictating that one cannot go below the threshold. Without our knowledge, many of us go below the threshold and are charged the full fees and surcharges thereafter. That is not an appropriate way to conduct business, especially when there are ATMs, etc. If the banks want people to have a certain amount of money in their accounts, they should protect the money in the accounts and make the process of withdrawal to a point below the threshold more difficult than simply going to an ATM. I would like to see a parameter put in place. The banks are making a fortune on this. They are putting the money on deposit in the inter-bank markets and making a profit on it. I am not talking about accounts with €3,000. Most accounts contain considerably more.