Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his reply. The specific problem here is in respect of Ulster Bank. When he discussed the matter with Ulster Bank, it put him in touch with the Royal Bank of Scotland. The latter's argument was that it is under the control of Her Majesty's Treasury and must meet the targets that are set for it in terms of its restructuring. Given that the Minister is reviewing the situation and he accepts we have a specific problem here, could contact be made, at ministerial or official level, outlining that there are specific solutions being devised in Ireland, through the credit guarantee scheme, and asking Ulster Bank to suspend its programme of selling loans, particularly for very small businesses that cannot afford the lawyer's services that are necessary to defend their case?

The Minister referred to consumer protection. There is some protection in place but where we are talking about impaired loans, many of those protections are invalid. An agreement has been made with the Irish banks whereby once a loan is sold, if the business is worth taking apart then the fund will take it apart with no regard for employment or the history and future potential of the business. Given that the Minister recognises there is a specific problem and a particular shortfall in terms of the Department's response, will he consider making an approach to Ulster Bank asking it to suspend its programme? That would have the additional effect of injecting urgency into the rolling out of the legislation.

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