Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

A whole range of reliefs are available. There are reliefs available for the rental sector, which the Deputy would acknowledge is an area in need of real support. Returning to a point I made earlier to Deputy Tóibín, the Central Bank has the key regulatory role. It does not set the interest rates on commercial operators, but when it comes to the commercial decisions, it does have a role about how to protect the most vulnerable customers and how to deal with those facing particular difficulty. We have learned over the years that the relationship between the mortgage holder and the relevant company is critical. In that respect, the Central Bank has a key role to play.

Mortgage interest relief is a matter for the budget. There were calls for a budget every month during the crisis last year. I do not think that was the right approach. The right approach for us is to engage in the budgetary process, which, as the Deputy knows, runs from April to October. It is not as if the budget is done in one day. There is an initial statement for the European Commission and the summer economic statement. Decisions about mortgage and tax supports-----

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