Results 5,841-5,860 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Written Answers — Project Bonds: Project Bonds (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Europe 2020 Project Bonds Initiative has been proposed by the EU Commission to help promoters of infrastructure projects attract additional private sources of finance from institutional investors. Under the initiative, the European Investment Bank (EIB) will provide credit enhancement to project companies issuing bonds to finance infrastructure projects. This will improve the rating of...

Written Answers — Stock Markets: Stock Markets (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: Food securities trading forms part of the regulation of derivatives. As the Deputy knows, the regulation of derivatives has been part of our discussions with the EU, and has been on the Ecofin agenda since September 2010, when the Commission published its proposal to regulate this market in the context of over-the-counter (OTC) trades. I can inform the Deputy that, following discussions,...

Written Answers — Mortgage Arrears: Mortgage Arrears (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Report of the Inter-Departmental Group on Mortgage Arrears indicated that the reform of personal insolvency legislation is a central catalyst to the resolution of the mortgage arrears problem. In particular it stated that new non-judicial debt settlement arrangements are vital to address the problem. The Deputy will be aware that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence...

Written Answers — Fiscal Policy: Fiscal Policy (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for our EU/IMF Programme of financial assistance was signed in December 2010, and following each of the subsequent quarterly reviews by the Troika, an update of the MoU is agreed. Each update to the MoU can include the continuation of or revisions to existing commitments along with new commitments. The EU/IMF Programme commitments in relation to the...

Written Answers — Banks Recapitalisation: Banks Recapitalisation (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy should be aware that the State met fully its obligations with regard to this year's promissory note payment to IBRC (formerly Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide Building Society). This year's payment was settled through a different mechanism than in 2011 – with a Government bond rather than a direct cash payment from the Exchequer – but nevertheless the 2012 IBRC promissory...

Written Answers — Banks Recapitalisation: Banks Recapitalisation (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 24 and 47 together. As the Deputy is aware the Government remains committed to reducing the cost incurred by the State in the rescue of the Irish Banks and to the protection of the States balance sheet. The recent agreement by the Troika to produce a common paper which will consider all options for the restructuring of the IRBC notes has the express purpose...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: As the deputy is aware, Bank of Ireland (the "Bank") announced on 29 March 2012 that the Bank had reached a conditional agreement to conduct a securities repurchase transaction with IBRC. The Bank stated: "As the transaction is considered to be a related party transaction under Listing Rules, it is subject to independent stockholder approval. A circular containing additional details of the...

Written Answers — Public Infrastructure Funding: Public Infrastructure Funding (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Exchequer does not currently have any loans from the European Investment Bank (EIB) but is negotiating a loan of €100 million from the Bank to part-fund the 2012 Exchequer Schools Programme. Any such borrowing would be carried out by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) and would form part of the National Debt. The Bank is also an important provider of funding to semi-states...

Written Answers — National Asset Management Agency: National Asset Management Agency (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The National Asset Management Agency is subject to a high level of public accountability compared to other commercial semi state bodies, reflecting the fact that it is managing a significant financial exposure on behalf of the Irish taxpayer. The NAMA Act 2009 makes the Agency accountable in a number of ways, including laying its annual report and audited financial statements before the...

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The proposed new policy framework for personal insolvency to be set out in the Personal Insolvency Bill which the Minister for Justice and Equality plans to publish before the end of June 2012 was seen by the report of the Inter-Departmental Committee on mortgage arrears as a key catalyst in dealing with the problem of mortgage arrears. The introduction of these reforms will reinforce the...

Written Answers — National Asset Management Agency: National Asset Management Agency (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy will be aware that, under Section 122 of the NAMA Act, a participating institution may dispute the total portfolio acquisition value of all bank assets acquired from it by NAMA if it believes that the aggregate market value of the acquired portfolio exceeds the total portfolio acquisition value. It may do this after service of a completion notice by NAMA. I understand that the EU...

Written Answers — Banks Recapitalisation: Banks Recapitalisation (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy is aware, the banking system restructuring plan creates capacity for the two Pillar Banks, Bank of Ireland and AIB, to provide lending in excess of €30 billion in the period 2011-2014. SME and new mortgage lending for these banks is expected to be in the range of €16-20bn over this period. This lending capacity is incorporated into the banks' deleveraging plans which allow...

Written Answers — State Banking Sector: State Banking Sector (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: Agreement has now been reached with the Troika on a proposed future strategic direction for Permanent TSB and a formal Restructuring Plan is to be submitted to the European Commission by the end of June. The strategic plan will create a strong retail bank that is focused on lending into the Irish economy and will enhance competition and choice for consumers. The State acquisition of Irish...

Written Answers — Strategic Investment Fund: Strategic Investment Fund (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: I assume that the Deputy is referring to the Strategic Investment Fund (SIF), the establishment of which was announced by the Government in September 2011. The SIF will channel commercial investment from the National Pensions Reserve Fund (NPRF) towards productive investment in the Irish economy. As well as money from the NPRF, the SIF will seek matching commercial investment from private...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The pension fund levy is a temporary stamp duty charge on the assets of pension funds which will be in place for 4 years in order to fund the Jobs Initiative introduced last year. There are very few exemptions from the levy and this, in part, explains why it was possible to introduce it at a relatively low rate of 0.6%. For example, the levy does not apply where the trustees of a scheme have...

Written Answers — National Asset Management Agency: National Asset Management Agency (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: Under Section 18 of the NAMA Act the board of NAMA is charged with ensuring that NAMA performs effectively and furthermore, NAMA is required to account for its costs in it s quarterly and annual reporting and is required under section 58 of the NAMA Act to account to a Dáil Committee ion the economy and efficiency of its use of resources. NAMA incurred a heavy burden of cost in its first...

Written Answers — Tax Reliefs: Tax Reliefs (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: Section 14 of Finance Act 2012 introduced the Special Assignee Relief Programme which is designed to reduce the cost to employers of assigning key individuals in their companies from abroad to take up positions in the Irish based operations of their employer. Paragraph 10 of Section 14 provides that relevant employers must submit an annual return to the Revenue Commissioners detailing,...

Written Answers — Personal Debt: Personal Debt (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Government is intensifying its efforts to address the mortgage arrears problem and a special temporary Government committee, chaired by An Taoiseach, is now meeting on a regular basis to prioritise this work agenda. Government is proceeding on the basis of the recommendations of the "Keane Report" which indicated that a blanket approach to debt forgiveness is not an appropriate or...

Written Answers — Banking Sector Regulation: Banking Sector Regulation (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: While I regret the closure of any bank branches, the Deputy will no doubt appreciate that the provision of services by banks, including the location of branches, is a commercial decision for the banks. The Deputy might wish to note that there is a provision in the Central Bank's Consumer Protection Code which imposes certain obligations on banks which have decided to close, merge or move a...

Written Answers — European Council Meetings: European Council Meetings (23 May 2012)

Michael Noonan: Finance Ministers are regularly updated on developments in Members States, including at the Eurogroup and Ecofin meetings. In this context, I would point out that the Spanish authorities are keeping their colleagues at EU level informed of developments. It is commonly acknowledged that the Spanish banking system as a whole remains vulnerable to market tensions given its exposure to...