Results 7,441-7,460 of 35,658 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: No. I spoke about a one-year loan-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Of course it will be a new loan. That the Minister of State shrugs his shoulders at that idea means he fails to understand exactly what is happening with moneylenders. This is the problem. There are families out there at the minute who are borrowing €1,000 and are paying it back. They pay the €560 interest. At the moment they are rolling that over and will not be allowed to...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Can the Central Bank revoke a licence midstream?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: I thank the Minister of State for his reply.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Are we dealing with amendment No. 5?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: On section 5, I want it noted that I am uncomfortable with the extension of the five-year period. While the Central Bank, through the Minister of State’s amendment which I welcome, is allowed to revoke or refuse a licence midstream, I encourage it to apply this provision where this has happened. I have made the point before that I accompanied whistleblowers to the Central Bank which...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: I move amendment No. 5: In page 8, to delete lines 34 and 35, and in page 9, to delete lines 1 to 15 and substitute the following: “(2) (a) The Minister shall prescribe in respect of a loan (other than a running account) under a high cost credit agreement— (i) the maximum rate of simple interest chargeable per week (being a rate less than or equal to 0.75 per...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: We went through this before but I ask the Minister of State to clarify his proposal. He spoke about the 1% per week rate. Under the Government's proposal, how much interest would a customer pay on a €1,000 loan over a period of 12 months?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Four hundred and eighty euro. How much lower is that than the current market for these loans?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Provident is the biggest provider in the market-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: It was the biggest provider in the market and it charged the highest rate of APR at 1.87%. Over a 12-month period, the APR comes down to about 1.57%. The interest it would have charged on a €1,000 loan was €560. The Minister of State is proposing to bring that down to €480. That is an improvement but it still immoral. The fact that the Minister of State is asking us...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: What would the APR be on a-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Yes, but there will be an APR for somebody who takes out a 12-month loan of €1,000.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: If it is 128% APR, it is still significantly high. The Minister of State is saying we need to strike a balance; that if we reduce it too much, we could scare people out of the market. He mentioned Provident has withdrawn. What calculations has he done to suggest that rate is the appropriate rate? All of the experts, including the Social Finance Foundation, have told us that this rate...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: The Minister of State's argument against my legislation and my amendment, which would reduce the cost of credit further on households - in my view it is still very high and that is why we need to reduce it further after three years - is that the Department has had to perform a balancing act in terms of a reduction while not scaring away those operating in the market. The view is that if the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Did he listen to the experts that came before the finance committee who told us that is not true and that we need to reduce this rate further? A rate of 126% APR is immoral. There is no way I am voting for the legislation, especially at a time of pressure on workers and families. The Minister of State is saying that instead of them charging €560 interest on a €1,000 loan, we...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: I want to tease that out a little bit further. Is there any evidence? The Minister of State has said half of the moneylenders will not be affected by the Bill because their charges are below the maximum rate and half are above it and they will be affected. The core point that he made is that this would scare people off. Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party believe that if...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: Does the Minister of State accept that the majority do not?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: The majority do not.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (11 May 2022)

Pearse Doherty: With regard to the consultation the Minister of State referred to, does he accept the majority of people who stated a rate stated one lower that than that which he is asking us to legislate for?