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

I accept that the issue of mortgage pricing and risk-weighted assets is technical and do not propose we go into it in detail. Is there ongoing engagement between the Central Bank and the SSM on the detail of the regulations and on whether they are proportional? The amount of capital that must be put aside for a mortgage issued today has been heavily influenced by what happened ten years ago, when there were not macroprudential rules and much more risky lending was happening in the market. It seems current home buyers and mortgage holders pay the price for that to a large extent.

To what degree will that eventually wash its way through the system? Our guests mentioned earlier that it is slowly coming through the system. The issue is an important influencer of mortgage pricing, although it is not widely understood because it is technical in nature. How quickly will it wash through? What engagement has the Central Bank with the SSM to ensure that the amount of capital that has to be put aside now is commensurate with the risk of mortgages currently being written?