Results 12,721-12,740 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: Thank you, Chairman, for facilitating us today and I thank the members who contributed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: I might have lost touch with the rules of committees, but there used to be provision for committees to do a piece of research work. Funds were available to do that work and a member could be appointed as a rapporteur. There are ways and means of addressing precise issues within committees.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: When I was Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts, we did that on a number of occasions. The Chairman could get a discrete piece of research work done, spend a small amount of money on it and appoint one of the members as a rapporteur to report back. That might get to the bottom of the matter.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The participants of the G20 would not put it as graphically as the Deputy but there is a general view that the corporate sector worldwide should contribute more to the budgets of countries. The only feasible way of addressing multinationals is on a multinational basis, and no one small country can remediate an international practice. The Deputy would agree with that as well. This is why...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The 14% figure is a European Commission estimate.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: There are different ways of approaching this and there are different answers. Percentages do not buy the bread and milk. My opinion is that the best source is the Revenue Commissioners, which published statistical reports on corporation tax which are now more lengthy than they used to be. In the 2012 Revenue Commissioners statistical report, which refers to 2011 data, it was indicated that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy should call to the one-stop shop as he is being short-changed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: Bank resolution registration across Europe is an entirely different matter to that of how mortgage holders of an individual institution which is in liquidation might be treated. There is a misunderstanding about what is happening. An independent liquidator has been put in place under law. Specific legislation in this regard was put through the Houses of the Oireachtas. His responsibility...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The representation at G20 for Europe is Commissioner Rehn, the Finance Minister of whichever country holds the Presidency and the Head of the European Central Bank, Mr. Draghi.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: Yes. They always are. There is a movement in all of the democracies now which suggests that the corporate sector is not providing a fair share of taxation to countries. That is a general view across democracies. The G20 mandated the OECD to look at corporation taxation and to come up with recommendations. That is reviewed at every meeting.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: It is too early to say, but nothing negative has emerged so far. The stability programme update, SPU, will be published in April. It is within that framework that we will indicate whether we are sticking to the same figure or varying it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: That is what we are doing. They are not alternatives. The Acting Chairman will recall that, after the exit from the programme, the Government published a medium-term economic strategy setting out the framework. All Departments are operating within that framework and making plans for their areas of responsibility. That work is being driven by Ministers. For example, there is a specific...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: I do not disagree with the Acting Chairman. What he has suggested is what is actually happening, but it is being driven by the Taoiseach's Department through a series of Cabinet sub-committees that meet regularly. They have timelined agendas and it is being driven forward hard. What there is not is a document wherein one can check the timeline. However, I have exactly the same opinion as...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The resolution fund is part of the new rules for resolving banks or financial institutions entering insolvency. This is the purpose of the resolution policy. The essential difference for the taxpayer is that, instead of insolvent financial institutions being bailed out by the taxpayers, which is what happened in Ireland and elsewhere, they will be bailed in by accessing in the first...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: There was general political agreement on the separation of sovereign and banking debt at the end of the Lithuanian Presidency. It is a matter for co-decision with the Parliament. It is before the Parliament at present. It is important to Ireland because we have spoken much about separating sovereign and banking debt. When the general political agreement was arrived at, the Deputy will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The possibility of retroactive recapitalisation is in the guidelines, which are agreed. The legal possibility is in place and this has come through the Council. The European stability mechanism, ESM, has been established, but the part which will involve the recapitalisation of banks is not in place yet. It should be in place at the end of 2014 or at the start of 2015. All decisions on the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The conclusions of the October 2013 European Council outlined the hierarchy of decision-making for bank recapitalisation, which continues to provide for ESM direct bank recapitalisation as part of the process. The conclusions called on the Eurogroup to finalise guidelines for ESM direct recapitalisation so the ESM would be able to recapitalise banks directly following the establishment and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: The retrospective aspect is a subset.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: This is one of the sticking points with the Parliament. The Greek Presidency cannot amend what has been proposed without political guidance from ECOFIN. On Monday night a Eurogroup plus meeting will take place, which is ECOFIN chaired by the President of the Eurogroup, Finance Minister Dijsselbloem from the Netherlands. It is agreed that the separation of sovereign and banking debt will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Forthcoming Economic and Financial Affairs Council: Minister for Finance (13 Feb 2014)

Michael Noonan: Germany moved into a position in which it stated it had no problem with five years so long as the full levies were paid up over the five year period also. We think this is onerous for our banking system. We would like a fund to be fully mutualised by year five and to continue to be built up. The instalments made from year six should also be mutualised at the point of entry.