Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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I thank our guests for coming before the committee. It is part of a long day of similar discussions. There are a number of instruments to deal with inflation. Which is the most effective, in the opinion of IFAC, without referring to policy? Sometimes there were credit controls in the past, specifically aimed at certain areas. That can be difficult as well. Increasing interest rates is a blunt instrument, as we know. It affects everybody to an ever-increasing extent. The main thing we need to remember is that mortgages are affected in a particular way. The fear that strikes into the hearts of people who have mortgages comes from the fact that nobody knows how long this is going to last. I raised the question earlier with the Department of Finance as to whether we can give some indication to the people who have borrowings and have faced an increase in interest rates over recent months which they see as a threat to them. What other means can the witnesses think of that could be used? Other members will refer to a wealth tax but I do not think the wealth tax does it. We had a wealth tax before and it had to be abolished. We are now groping around for the best possible way to deal with inflation, which is a serious problem. What should we do?