Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)

On the issue of licensed and unlicensed moneylenders, given that many people, especially those on low and middle incomes, are going to moneylenders because they cannot get access to credit from the banks, does the Minister believe the APR they are allowed to charge is too high and that we need to revisit that issue owing to the economic conditions in which we find ourselves?

In regard to the illegality of unlicensed moneylenders, I do not know them personally but we hear stories of unlicensed moneylenders in most towns and villages throughout the State, in particular in the run-up to Christmas. The fact they are illegal does not seem to matter. Will there be tighter legislation which will remove these types of parasites who are feeding off the financial difficulties people experience, in particular in the run-up to events like Christmas?

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