Results 19,101-19,120 of 26,148 for speaker:Kieran O'Donnell

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Banking Sector: Bank of Ireland (5 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: The two year fixed rate for a mortgage with a loan-to-value ratio of greater than 75% is 4.35% in the Republic and 2.09% in the North. Why is the rate charged in the North less than half the rate charged here? Is it the result of the lack of competition in the market in the Republic? Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Banks control a large part of the residential mortgage book in Ireland....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: I want to address a couple of points. I note that in the October meeting, ECOFIN discussed the issue around the bank, banking union and the bank recapitalisation. Developing on what he has already discussed with Deputy McGrath, what are the Minister's thoughts on the process that would be involved in terms of Ireland getting to the point of making an application for retroactive...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: To be more specific, direct recapitalisation in terms of current activities for banks appears to be relatively straightforward. I wish to deal specifically with the Irish situation, our banks being in a sound position, and the possibility of retroactive recapitalisation. If that were to become an option, what is the process the Minister sees developing in Europe? Guidelines have been put...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: The Minister explained that well at the previous meeting. I wish to deal specifically with the retroactive issue, because the Minister went through that other issue in great depth at our previous meeting on this topic. More specifically on the retroactive aspect, which is obviously-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: Does the Minister anticipate-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: Does the Minister consider it possible, and he will be looking at it in the margins, to give an indication of a timeframe at this point?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: Is that because these processes take time in terms of discussions?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: I am looking at it specifically in the context of what is up for discussion and the Minister is saying he is having discussions on the margins.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: Conversations on the margins then. I wish to move on to the issue of revision of VAT and gross national income, GNI, own resources balances from 1995 to 2013. Will this particular proposal have an impact on Ireland's contribution to the EU budget? What is the update on that?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Pre-ECOFIN Briefing: Minister for Finance (4 Nov 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: In layman's terms, the Minister believes the way it has been calculated is correct but in terms of the time period over which it is paid, the Minister has an open mind.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: I ask that CER is put on our schedule, as a matter of urgency, in the context of charges in respect of Irish Water and the commission's work in that area. My queries relate to the area of Irish Water. The Commission for Energy Regulation falls directly under the remit of this committee. I do not know how my colleagues feel but I ask that an immediate invitation is extended to the CER to...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: In the context of the work programme - it may have come already but at the risk of repeating - when is the Commission for Energy Regulation due to come before the committee?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: It was two years.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: Would the witness agree that a timeframe of six years before the audit was concluded for the 2008 accounts was not good?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: The final point is one which arose at the last committee meeting. In future, when the Comptroller and Auditor General is doing an annual report, it is important that audits that are ongoing would be highlighted so we can be made aware of audits that are ongoing for six years. If that happened in the private sector, companies would be struck off and gone.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: We cannot have double standards.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: It is an annual matter. It is not taking from the great work that the various organisations do, but in terms of consistency this highlights that attention must be drawn to it on an annual basis.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: By way of observation, there was something slightly curious about the fact that from 2007 on, the accounts for the harbours were qualified whereas in 2006 they were unqualified. I was wondering how we went from a situation where they were unqualified to being qualified the following year. At that stage, both were under the Department of Communications and Natural Resources. It is just an...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is new information. We did not have that at the time they were here. Mr. McCarthy is saying that his audit qualification was based on the fact that it went from the Department of Communications and Natural Resources to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Yet we were told on the day by the latter Department's officials that, in essence, the same people were on the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (23 Oct 2014)

Kieran O'Donnell: So Mr. McCarthy had no issue when they were with the Department of Communications and Natural Resources, but he had an issue when they were with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine?