Results 4,181-4,200 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Other Questions: Social and Affordable Housing Funding (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is the Department primarily responsible for the formulation and implementation of policy and the preparation of legislation on housing. My Department has received a number of different proposals from the Credit Union Development Association, CUDA, and Irish League of Credit Unions, ILCU.  Proposals from both...

Other Questions: Social and Affordable Housing Funding (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I do not have a note on the alternative models. I will communicate directly with the Deputy by letter if that is acceptable.

Other Questions: Social and Affordable Housing Funding (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I would like to see a wider role for the credit union movement and there is certainly some potential for it to take a greater role in the housing area. While credit unions have significant funds on hand, we should remember that these funds are their members' savings. The regulator in the Central Bank would be averse to the credit union movement putting these savings at risk and would...

Other Questions: Social and Affordable Housing Funding (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: We will assist the credit unions in any way we can, as will the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. However, as the holders of the money, the credit unions must take the lead role, although we will certainly assist them in that regard.

Other Questions: NAMA Portfolio (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy is aware, the National Asset Management Agency does not own or sell properties.  NAMA acquired loans and the properties that secure these loans are owned by the agency's debtors.  NAMA's legal relationship with these debtors is much the same as a bank's relationship with its mortgage holders where the bank holds a claim against the house as security for...

Other Questions: NAMA Social Housing Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy will be aware, the NAMA chairman and CEO appeared at the Oireachtas Committee on Housing and Homelessness on Thursday, 12 May. NAMA provided a presentation for the committee which outlined, among other useful information, the progress on its residential funding programme. The presentation is available on the Oireachtas and NAMA websites. Specifically, NAMA's key residential...

Other Questions: NAMA Social Housing Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy for his supplementary question. It is not a matter for NAMA to determine the proportion of social housing that will be provided. The allocation of social housing units per development is prescribed by Part V of the Planning and Development Act at 10% of on-site units. As the Deputy will be aware, NAMA's commitment to funding residential development is not one to build or...

Other Questions: NAMA Social Housing Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: It is not the intention to increase it because NAMA does not have discretion to do so. It is involved in the promotion of private housing developments. It is committed to providing 20,000 units and will comply with Part V of the Planning and Development Act in order that 2,000 of the 20,000 units will be social units. If the law changes, it will comply with the new percentage, whether it...

Other Questions: Motor Insurance (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: We are all aware of the rising cost of insurance, particularly motor insurance, and will recall that the House allocated three hours to debate the matter on 20 April. I have noted the widespread concern across the House about insurance costs and noted the Dáíl statements made on that day. The ability of the Government to influence insurance practices and pricing is limited as...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Ireland Strategic Investment Fund Investments (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: The new Minister for housing is dealing with these issues with all expedition. As the Deputy rightly stated, the model for building houses is broken. Many of the small builders in the supply stream went bust and have not returned to the business since the economy's recovery. The finance model is also gone. As such, we must find new ways. As can be seen in Dublin, most current...

Other Questions: Banks Recapitalisation (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy for his question. As I have stated previously, I see no benefit in making an application for retrospective use of the ESM's direct recapitalisation instrument, DRI. During the period between June 2012, when the agreement was reached regarding retrospective recapitalisation, and December 2014, when the DRI tool became operational, the Irish economy recovered...

Other Questions: Banks Recapitalisation (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: It was clear when the possibility was raised in the first instance and subsequently that any retroactive recapitalisation of the banks would require an exchange of shares in Irish banks for any money given through the ESM. One need not do much study to know that the potential for acquiring a great deal of capital through the sale of bank shares on the markets is now a more valuable option...

Other Questions: Banks Recapitalisation (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: There are some matters that are for the competence of an individual Minister, such as the Minister for Finance, and there are other matters that are for the competence of the Government. It is the job of the Parliament to hold Governments accountable, but the Parliament usually does not exercise executive functions along the lines the Deputy has suggested and I have not seen anything in the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Flood Risk Insurance Cover Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy for his promised support. In my view, the attitude of the insurance industry to the provision of insurance where demountable defences have been put in place is now bordering on the ridiculous and cannot be allowed to continue. Demountable defences are an internationally accepted and established measure for providing flood protection as part of publicly funded flood relief...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Ireland Strategic Investment Fund Investments (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I presume the Deputy is referring to Activate Capital, Activate, which is a non-bank financing platform established by the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, and the global investment group KKR to invest on a commercial basis in residential development projects in Ireland to help address the current supply shortages in the main urban centres. Activate is focused exclusively on lending...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Ireland Strategic Investment Fund Investments (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy. The fund is only up and running since 1 January 2016 and as such is only five months in operation. Already, it has funded 800 new homes with a potential to fund 11,000. There is a roll-over effect as money is repaid and can be lent again. One can argue about the interest rate, but equity is always dearer than normal lending. The banks do perhaps 65% after which money...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: The code of conduct, as it exists, is on a statutory basis. What we are talking about now is proposed amendments to the code of conduct. My commitment is that any amendment would naturally be covered by statute as well, so there would be a statutory basis to it. The code of conduct has been reviewed already and I am willing to review it again to make it mandatory on lenders to provide the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I can confirm that in conversations around the time of the negotiation of the programme for Government there was an agreement that we would continue to have the code of conduct on a statutory basis and that it would be extended to cover certain options that borrowers are not statutorily bound to offer. The two the Deputy mentioned certainly were the principal ones that came up in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Flood Risk Insurance Cover Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: The flooding crisis earlier this year has raised issues in relation to insurance and flooding and I am aware of the difficulties that the absence or withdrawal of flood insurance cover can cause to homeowners. One of my primary concerns in the area of insurance is that homeowners have access to insurance to cover unforeseen losses, including flooding.  ...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Flood Risk Insurance Cover Provision (18 May 2016)

Michael Noonan: I think that once flood defences are put in at taxpayers' expense and they are seen to be effective, insurance cover should follow immediately. The note I have says the insurance industry claims mountable defences and flood gates do not meet the desired one-in-100-years standard. It has highlighted that the construction of demountable defences will not increase flood coverage in these areas...