Results 4,521-4,540 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Written Answers — Tax Collection: Tax Collection (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the only data available on the taxable income of non-residents comes from the income tax returns filed in Ireland by those non-resident individuals who have Irish source income or income derived from working in Ireland. The data does not distinguish between citizens and non-citizens. Income tax returns for 2011 are not due to be filed until 31...

Written Answers — Financial Services Regulation: Financial Services Regulation (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The imposition of lending restrictions is the responsibility of the Registrar of Credit Unions, who is the independent regulator for credit unions. Within his independent regulatory discretion, the Registrar acts to support the prudential soundness of individual credit unions, to maintain sector stability and to protect the savings of credit union members. As Minister for Finance, my role...

Written Answers — Fiscal Policy: Fiscal Policy (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: It is the stated intention of the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) to return to sovereign debt markets as soon as market conditions permit. On 25th January 2012 it re-engaged with the bond market and extended the maturity of some €3.5 billion of debt which was due for repayment just after the end of the EU/IMF Programme. This is a significant first step in terms of managing...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the institution involved that all three directors referred to in the Deputy's question tendered their resignation of their own volition and no monetary arrangements were made in these cases.

Written Answers — EU-IMF Agreement: EU-IMF Agreement (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: As described previously in answer to Parliamentary Questions No. 152 of 17th May 2011, No. 58 of 2nd June 2011, and No. 30 of 5th July 2011, the Government's decision to repay senior bank bond holders was made in consultation with the ECB and other 'Troika' members. Ireland is not a member of the G7 and there were no direct discussions with Mr. Geithner on this matter.

Written Answers — Economic Recovery: Economic Recovery (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: Appropriate policy responses can and will have positive influences in terms of supporting economic recovery in Europe. First and foremost, it is clear that resolving the euro area sovereign debt crisis is a prerequisite for a return to sustainable growth, both in the euro area and the wider EU. In this regard, we are now seeing concerted action to address the weaknesses that have become...

Written Answers — Personal Debt: Personal Debt (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Government is acutely aware of the increasing financial stress that some households are facing arising from difficulty in meeting their mortgage commitments. The Government, therefore, established an Inter-Departmental Working Group on Mortgage Arrears to consider what additional measures could be introduced to assist people experiencing mortgage difficulty. The Group's report was...

Written Answers — EU-IMF Agreement: EU-IMF Agreement (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: There are two different deficit targets laid down in the EU/IMF Programme. The first relates to the annual General Government deficit and the second relates to quarterly Exchequer primary balance targets. Neither of these targets is a structural one. The new Treaty requires us to achieve a balanced budget in structural terms, in other words after adjustment for the impact of the economic...

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The eligible assets of participating financial institutions were acquired at an acquisition value which was determined in line with Part 5 of the NAMA Act, 2009 and the National Asset Management Agency (Determination of Long Term Economic Value of Property and Bank Assets) Regulations, 2010. The 30 November, 2009 is the reference valuation date for the valuation of all assets acquired by...

Written Answers — Ministerial Meetings: Ministerial Meetings (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 32 and 56 together. I had my first scheduled meeting with Mr. Draghi, the President of the European Central Bank on Tuesday 24th January in Frankfurt. I have also met Mr. Draghi on the margins of Eurogroup and Ecofin meetings since his appointment last November. At the meeting of 24th January last, I had a good discussion with Mr. Draghi on a number of...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: On the basis that the Placing Agreement entered into on 23 December 2010, the Placing Agreement entered into on 1 July 2011 and the Minister's Letter entered into on 25 July 2011 are private contractual documents entered into between, amongst others, the Minister for Finance and Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. ("AIB"), it would not be appropriate for such documents to be made publicly available....

Written Answers — Financial Services Regulation: Financial Services Regulation (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 34 and 64 together. I am advised by the Central Bank that following the failure of Home Payments Limited in mid-2011 it inspected the bill payment and debt management industry to assess whether firms providing these services are carrying out any activity that falls to be regulated by the Central Bank and whether consumer funds may be at risk. The first phase...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am not unwilling to name the unsecured unguaranteed bondholders who are due to be paid in 2013. As he Deputy is aware I am not in a position to provide a list of the bondholders who were repaid the gross payment of €1.25 billion. I am advised that the process of issuing new bonds is normally through underwriting, where one or more securities firms or banks form a syndicate buying the...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The negotiation of any other contracts in relation to the day to day operations of the bank is a matter for the management and Board of AIB. On 5 Jan 2012, Aviva announced that its Life and Pensions (Ark Life) distribution arrangement with AIB will not be renewed in its current format when it expires in 2012. As it is a commercial matter for the Bank, any future negotiations/agreements...

Written Answers — EU Summits: EU Summits (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I met Commission Vice-President Rehn last week when in Brussels. As the Deputy is aware, I and other members of the Government make sure to take advantage of any appropriate opportunities to pursue contacts with Member States and with key partners such as the European Commission. Commission Vice-President Rehn and I discussed the Irish EU-IMF programme in the light of the recent visit of...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: In the 12 months to end September 2011, the last 12 month period for which figures are available, over 12 billion SMS messages and over 43 million MMS messages were sent in Ireland. This information is based on figures for mobile telephone usage per quarter supplied by the companies to the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg). At those usage rates, a levy of 2 cent on such...

Written Answers — Motor Fuel Costs: Motor Fuel Costs (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: Ireland, as with other countries, has experienced an increase in the cost of petrol and auto-diesel. The increase in fuel prices is an international phenomenon. Fuel prices are driven by a number of factors including the price of oil on international markets, exchange rates, production costs and refining costs. The rise in oil prices over recent periods reflected additional factors such as...

Written Answers — Job Losses: Job Losses (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: As I have stated previously, the Deputy will appreciate that it is an inevitable, but unfortunate, consequence of the necessary restructuring of the banking system that job losses will arise. Essentially the banks will be smaller operations than previously with the focus being on the creation of the two universal full-service pillar banks with a more domestic remit and a restructured Irish...

Written Answers — Financial Services Regulation: Financial Services Regulation (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Government established the Commission on Credit Unions, which includes credit union stakeholders, to review the future of the credit union movement and make recommendations in relation to the most effective regulatory structure for the sector. The Commission is to take into account credit unions' not-for-profit mandate, their volunteer ethos and community focus, while paying due regard...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (1 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy is aware discussions in relation to the Promissory Notes have been on-going for some time. These discussions are part of the overall restructuring of the banking sector. In the year 2011 the following external advisors have been engaged to provide support. Up to the end of December 2011 the costs were borne by the National Treasury Management Agency. From 2012 onwards costs...