Results 10,961-10,980 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Money Advice and Budgeting Service Issues (16 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The Central Bank has announced its intention to operate a pilot scheme for the restructuring of secured and unsecured distressed consumer debt across multiple lenders. The aim of the pilot framework is to achieve sustainable and fair outcomes without the need for the borrower to enter the full insolvency process. It is focused on enhancing cooperation between lenders of secured and unsecured...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Bank Interest Rates (16 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: As I indicated to the Deputy in a PQ reply in January of this year, officials of my Department regularly engage with the commercial banks on a wide range of issues, including the cost of funding. The NTMA is responsible for the State Savings schemes which includes Savings Certificates, Savings Bonds, Prize Bonds, the National Solidarity Bond and Instalment Savings, as well as the Deposit...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: State Savings Value (16 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 113 and 114 together. State Savings is the brand name used by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) to describe the range of savings products offered by the State to personal savers. An Post is an agent of the NTMA in respect of the sale of the State Savings product range which includes Savings Bonds, Savings Certificates, Instalments Savings,...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Property Taxation Collection (16 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: As I have indicated to the House on a number of occasions, most recently in my reply to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 87 (20652/13) and 92 (20686/13) on 1 May, liable persons who have not yet received an LPT Return from Revenue must still self-assess the amount of LPT due, complete and file their LPT Return by the relevant deadline and pay the tax due. In my previous replies I also indicated...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: European Banking Union (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The European Council meeting of 29 June 2012 considered a report from the President of the European Council, in co-operation with the Presidents of the Commission, the Eurogroup and the ECB, which set out building blocks for future Economic and Monetary Union. One of these building blocks is an integrated financial framework, or banking union, which comprises three elements: an integrated...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: European Banking Union (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: We have made significant progress in the Irish Presidency on the single supervisory mechanism which was the first major step that has now been agreed. We have also got agreement on the capital requirements directive, CRD IV, which the Deputy will recall was the directive which decided on the capital requirements of banks and introduces the new Basel rules with which banks must comply. The...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: European Banking Union (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The stability mechanism is not just an Irish institution; it is in place for all 27 member states. I have explained previously to the Deputy that three Eurogroup meetings included a political discussion to give guidance to the small group drafting the guidelines for the ESM. In that context, there were discussions on both legacy issues and retrospective application in recapitalisation....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Bank Charges (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: I must confirm for the Deputy that the lending institutions in Ireland, including those in which the State has a significant shareholding, are independent commercial entities. I have no statutory role in relation to regulated financial institutions passing on the European Central Bank interest rate change. It is a commercial matter for each institution concerned. Neither have I...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Bank Charges (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy refers to November 2011, which was when the Taoiseach wrote to the Central Bank to ask if it was seeking regulatory powers to control interest rates. The Deputy Governor replied to the effect that the Central Bank was not seeking such powers and provided good and sufficient reasons for not doing so. The difference between the situation in November 2011 and now is that at that...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Bank Charges (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: We have very good formal relationships with the banks now. Contacts can be make quite adequately through officials in the Department of Finance, who are in constant contact with the banks. An interest rate is the price at which money is lent and the price contains a pricing in of risk. The banks must be in a position to arrange these matters commercially when they are no longer relying...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Credit Union Issues (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: Many distressed borrowers have multiple debts with different lenders and have to deal with each lender on each debt. This makes it difficult for a borrower and his or her lenders to address the personal debt difficulties on a whole of debt basis. In view of this, at the start of March the Central Bank commenced a process to facilitate the development of a co-ordinated approach among lenders...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Credit Union Issues (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The Department of Finance and I have a very good relationship with the credit union movement, both at national level and with individual credit unions around the country. The Deputy will recall that when the legislation to restructure the credit union movement was brought before the House, many amendments were suggested by Deputies on behalf of the movement. All issues were resolved by...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Credit Union Issues (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: I have been urged by all sides of the House to come up with solutions to the problem of personal debt. We have spent a lot of time on it and we are now at the point where the system is beginning to work properly. The primary legislation is the insolvency Act. It is just ready to come online but there are circumstances where problems could be resolved better informally. The Central Bank is...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Banking Sector Remuneration (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy will be aware that when publishing the review of remuneration practices and frameworks at the covered institutions on 12 March 2013, I indicated that the Government had formed the view that with the remaining State-supported banks still incurring losses it was an inescapable conclusion that the cost base of the institutions needed to be reduced further. This is essential if they...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Banking Sector Remuneration (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: I am not neutral on the method the banks may use to achieve payroll savings. We are talking about a reduction of between 6% and 10% in the cost base of each institution. The Deputy will recall that Mercer did an evaluation of the three institutions concerned, which we published. Arising from that, the Government decided that the cost bases of the banks were still too high. They are all...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Banking Sector Remuneration (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: Surely nobody in this House is advocating that the banks should continue trading unprofitably and that Irish taxpayers should be asked to put more money in to keep salaries up and pensions high. That is a ridiculous proposition. Banks must cut their cloth according to their measure, but I will not dictate the specific terms of how they cut it. I have said that I want to see reductions of...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: In the November 2012 medium-term fiscal statement, my Department published a paper on the importance of small business to the Irish economy. The paper highlighted that small and medium-sized businesses, SMEs, make up more than 99% of businesses in Ireland and account for almost 70% of people employed. To that end, as part of budget 2013, I included a ten-point tax reform plan containing...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: Accessing credit is a problem for small businesses. We have strengthened both the banks and the credit union movement to enable them to provide credit, but, in addition, we have introduced the seed capital scheme and the bank guarantee scheme. We have also set up the Credit Control Office to enable small businesses whose banks have refused loans to appeal to the Director of Credit Control...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: That is an issue that we will consider in the context of the budget. It is far too early in the year to be talking about taxes.

Other Questions: Financial Instruments (21 May 2013)

Michael Noonan: The MiFID, markets in financial instruments directive, file was included on the ECOFIN agenda as part of the any other business legislative updates on key files and there was very little discussion on the issues in the file. The purpose of the discussion was to update the member states on the current state of play of this dossier and to reiterate my hope that the Council can reach an...