Results 9,281-9,300 of 36,189 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Other Questions: EU-IMF Programme of Support (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: Did the troika leave on 21 or 30 November? What discussions did the Minister have with the representatives of the Commission, the IMF and the ECB about water charges? Was the new regime that the Government announced, which is unacceptable to the Irish people, discussed with the troika members? Did they raise any concerns about, for example, the water conservation grant that has nothing to...

Other Questions: EU-IMF Programme of Support (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: I appreciate that the Minister was not in the room, but I expect he was well briefed. We sometimes learn more about these matters from the media than we do in this Chamber. It is suggested that the mortgage crisis is another area that was discussed. Obviously, the Minister has changed his tune on how to deal with those seeking mortgages and restrictions on lending. The Central Bank has...

Other Questions: Mortgage Interest Rates (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: 10. To ask the Minister for Finance his views on whether mortgage holders in this State are paying a fair price for their mortgages in view of the record low levels of ECB interest rates. [45946/14]

Other Questions: Mortgage Interest Rates (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: It is clear that interest rates in this State are out of sync with what they should be. The Governor of the Central Bank, Professor Honohan, suggested that at the finance committee meeting last week, and also that he intends to do nothing about it. The Minister's response is that the Government is at arm's length from this and that it is due to commercial decisions by the banks. It is...

Other Questions: Mortgage Interest Rates (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: There is clearly a lack of competition in the banking sector, and a number of banks are bogged down by loss-making tracker mortgages. Despite what some may think, not all tracker loan books are loss-making. I welcome AIB's move to reduce its variable interest rate. In continental Europe the average variable mortgage interest rate is 2.64%, compared to 4.5% here. We must consider what will...

Other Questions: Mortgage Interest Rates (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: The former Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Brian Hayes, said it was a disgrace. Either he was playing politics or he genuinely believes it. There are people in Fine Gael - maybe even the Minister, or the Minister of State, Deputy Harris, who is sitting beside him - who believe the variable interest rates are a disgrace and need to be reduced in line with the ECB reductions....

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Banking Sector (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: 21. To ask the Minister for Finance further to his views regarding the future of AIB the reason he is quoted as saying the bank will return to private ownership over a number of years through a public selling of the shares in view of his commitment to apply for the retrospective recapitalisation of the pillar banks. [45942/14]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Economic Growth (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: 24. To ask the Minister for Finance his views on the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council report and, in particular, its concerns regarding the potential for a distortion in growth figures. [45943/14]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Data (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: 40. To ask the Minister for Finance the number of mortgages in the State that are owned by securitisation special purpose vehicles; and if he will provide the names of these companies. [46433/14]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Government Expenditure (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: 43. To ask the Minister for Finance the limits in actual figures and in percentage the expenditure benchmark will place on Government spending for the next five years if the Government's projected growth figures for these years are realised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46487/14]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: We have been waiting a long time for this Bill. Will the Department outline the reasons for the delay and the difficulties encountered? I also ask them to outline the discussions they had with the Attorney General's office and the questions that arose in that context. When can we expect publication of the Bill?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: If we are going to see publication by the end of the year, it will be next year before we are actually dealing with this legislation and it is passed into law.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: People out there have genuine concerns about this because the Government missed this issue and we are now trying to deal with it retrospectively. To simplify the issue, if I had a loan that was with a regulated financial institution that was sold on to a third party, after this legislation is passed, regardless of what that third party is doing at this point in time, that loan will be just...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: Would there be any case in the context of the scenario I have outlined, where a loan was sold by a regulated entity to an unregulated one, that post the enactment of this Bill, the borrower would be at a disadvantage?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: I understand that is the intention but just to be clear, there is no situation envisaged where such people would be at a disadvantage once this Bill is passed. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: Has the Department identified, in its attempts at drafting the legislation to meet the intended outcome, any cases where people would be disadvantaged because the legislation did not apply at the time of the sale of the loan book?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: Even for those people in the middle, in limbo, the same type of laws and rules will apply. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: We could tease that out further but will probably deal with it again on Committee Stage. Issues have been raised relating to the Securitisation Special Purpose Vehicles, SSPVs, in this Bill. When I saw them in the heads of the Bill, I submitted a parliamentary question to the Department. In his response, the Minister drew my attention to a link to the ECBH website because I asked him for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee
General Scheme of Sale of Loan Books to Unregulated Third Parties Bill 2014: Discussion (3 Dec 2014)

Pearse Doherty: So, there will be no exemptions in the legislation because every loan will have a servicer or an owner and, therefore, every loan will be regulated and there is no way out of that. Is that correct?