Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

A delegation from the committee visited the European Central Bank, ECB, in recent weeks. We met the ECB to discuss loan restructuring, particularly of home loans. It informed us that it did not issue any instruction on non-performing loans and did not define a time for reducing the number of NPLs. It wanted loans put in place that were sustainable. If a loan was €200,000 and the only element that was sustainable was €100,000, it wanted an arrangement for €100,000 and was not worried about how many years it would spread over, which would depend on the age of the person. This would involve parking or warehousing the €100,000 in unsustainable junior debt, and having the senior debt, which would be 100% sustainable, repaid. Does Mr. Kissane find that the banks do that or are they only willing to restructure loans to a certain percentage, such as 75%? The ECB was frustrated by the banks because it felt it was being blamed for the timeframe associated with reducing the NPLs. It wants to see sustainable mortgages. What is Mr. Kissane's experience of that with the banks?