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

I thank the Deputy. We should acknowledge that collectively we have a role to play because when I dug into this matter a little deeper and looked at the numbers it was clear the overwhelming majority of savings people have are in instant access accounts or current accounts, not in deposit accounts or term notice accounts where the interest rate is much higher. We can help ourselves, in addition to putting pressure on the institutions to ensure there is an appropriate level of pass-through. That is on the savings side. On the mortgage side, I put some figures on the record a moment ago. The overall level of pass-through, of increases in interest rates has been lower in Ireland, at 1.57% compared to the EU average of 2.21%. In regard to new mortgages being issued the weighted average interest rate in Ireland is in line with the EU average. However, we always welcome more competition. The role of non-bank lenders, of credit unions will become increasingly important in the future.

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