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

On mortgage switching, a practical step the Central Bank could take would be introducing a code of conduct. There is a code for those who want to switch their current account and one might save €20 or €30 a month as a result. Those who are in a position to switch their mortgage should be shopping around and they could save a few hundred euro every month as a result. The Central Bank needs to make it easier for them to do so and the introduction of a code of conduct on mortgage switching would be relevant in that regard. I repeat the point that at a time when the cost of funds for banks in Ireland has fallen to between 1% and 1.5%, it is unjustifiable that they continue to charge rates that are multiples of these figures - between 4% and 4.5%. The perception is that they are targeting their existing variable rate customers to make up for losses they are incurring on their tracker mortgage book. They are offering more attractive deals to new customers and there is some evidence of competition in the mortgage market for new entrants, first time buyers and so on, but if one is an existing variable rate customer, seeking to remortgage and move to another bank is not an option. One is then trapped, despite the fact that the cost of funds for banks is a fraction of what they are charging customers. In its role as consumer watchdog - it has a key statutory role to play in consumer protection - the Central Bank could do more on the issue.