Results 18,501-18,520 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that their legal obligation not to divulge taxpayer information precludes them from providing the specific details the Deputy has requested. However, the Revenue Commissioners inform me that they are engaged in a compliance program that involves visits to pension providers, pension administrators and pension trustees in relation to the transfer...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: NAMA Operations (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am advised that the NAMA Chief Executive, in his opening address to the Public Accounts Committee on 18 December 2014, stated that NAMA is aiming to redeem a cumulative 80% (€24 billion) of its senior debt by the end of 2016 and that it hopes that it will have redeemed all of it by the end of 2018. He stated that those targets were predicated on conditions in the Irish market...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: European Council Meetings (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: On 3 December 2014, €500 million was disbursed to Ukraine as the final part of the EU's €1 billion Macro-Financial Assistance programme (MFA II). The first package (MFA I) amounted to €610 million. On 18 December 2014, the European Council stated that "the Union and its Member States stand ready to further facilitate and support Ukraine's...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Ministerial Meetings (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The Managing Director of the IMF, Christine Lagarde, visited Dublin on 19 January to attend a conference organised by the IMF together with the Central Bank of Ireland and the Centre for Economic Policy Research on Ireland lessons learned from its Recovery from the Bank Sovereign Loop. I participated in a high level discussion panel at the conference along with Ms Christine Lagarde, Mr...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Pensions Levy (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 51 and 54 together. The pension fund levy is not a levy on pensions but is a stamp duty charge that applies to the market value, on the valuation date, of assets under management in pension funds and pension plans approved under Irish tax legislation. The levy was introduced in 2011 to fund the Jobs Initiative and has applied at a rate of 0.6% for the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Credits (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that following direct engagement from the person concerned and having regard to all of the circumstances, an amended certificate of tax credits issued to him on 30 January 2015 reflecting the full tax credits to which he is entitled.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Pensions Levy Yield (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that final receipts in 2014 from the Stamp Duty levy on pension fund assets, introduced in the Finance (No.2) Act 2011, are €743 million. The forecast yield for 2014 was €675 million.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: NAMA Operations (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by NAMA that there are no such finder fee arrangements in place.  In order to meet their obligations to NAMA, debtors are required to actively manage assets which form part of NAMA's security so as to optimise their realised value.    This includes the collection of rents and service charges, arrangements for letting of vacant units and the operation of rent...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Collection (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by Revenue that, where possible, it always seeks to work with businesses that are experiencing temporary cash-flow difficulties in preference to deploying debt collection/enforcement measures to secure outstanding taxes. However, such discussions require open and committed engagement to identify mutually acceptable solutions and are predicated on a business being viable and...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Economic Competitiveness (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: Substantial progress has been made in terms of improving Ireland's competitiveness in recent years. There has been a significant improvement in Ireland's economy-wide cost competitiveness. The European Commission in its autumn forecasts estimated that real unit labour costs in Ireland fell by 4.3 per cent annually in 2014, which is the largest decline across all EU Member States and...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Arrears Rate (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The Government's Strategy to address the problem of mortgage arrears is overseen by the Construction 2020, Housing Planning and Mortgage Arrears Cabinet sub-committee, chaired by the Taoiseach. The strategy was formulated in response to the recommendations of the Keane Report (2011) and the main elements of it are: - Engagement with the banks to develop appropriate measures for their...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Bank Charges (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: All credit institutions in Ireland are independent commercial entities. I have no statutory role in relation to the charges applied by credit institutions. Section 149 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995 requires that credit institutions, prescribed credit institutions and bureaux de change must make a submission to the Central Bank if they wish to introduce any new customer charges or increase...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Loan Books Purchasers (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I understand that most purchasers of loan books have stated they are voluntarily complying with the Codes. Of course voluntary compliance is not enforceable. In order to ensure that consumers maintain these protections, the Government committed in March 2014 to bringing forward legislation to protect consumers whose loans are sold to unregulated entities. The Consumer Protection...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Economic Growth (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: Following the successful conclusion of the EU-IMF programme, the Irish economy has emerged from the crisis and economic recovery is now well established. The latest available data for 2014 show that GDP growth for the first three quarters of the year is broadly in line with my Department's forecast at Budget time. According to recent figures published by the European Commission, it...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: House Prices (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: As is the case with other economic indicators, my Department monitors trends in house prices on an ongoing basis. According to the Central Statistics Office, national residential property prices increased by 16.3 per cent in the 12 months to December. Prices in Dublin rose by 22.3 per cent while price growth nationally excluding Dublin stood at 10.2 per cent over the same period. Under...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Economic Growth (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I regularly discuss the evolving economic situation with my counterparts at the monthly ECOFIN meetings, taking into account important developments such as oil price movements. In this regard, it is worth noting that the European Commission will release its Winter Forecasts later this week in which it is expected that it will address the impact of falling oil prices. From an Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Banks Recapitalisation (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy will be aware, the Euro-area Heads of State or Government (HoSG) agreed in June 2012 that "it is imperative to break the vicious circle between banks and sovereigns" and that when a Single Supervisory Mechanism, involving the ECB, is in place and operational, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) could recapitalize banks directly. On 8 December 2014, the ESM's Board of...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Credit Availability (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 65 and 67 together. As the Deputy is aware, my Department commissions biannual surveys to ascertain the demand for credit by SMEs. This survey series, currently being conducted by Red C on behalf of my Department, is the most comprehensive survey of SME credit demand in Ireland, covering 1,500 respondents and involving over 6,000 direct telephone calls to...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Lending (4 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 66 and 68 together. The latest data on new mortgage lending issued by the Banking and Payments Federation shows that, albeit coming off a low base, mortgage lending continues to increase. In the third quarter of 2014 (the latest quarter for which information is available) new mortgage lending surpassed the €1bn mark in a quarter for the first time...

Customs Bill 2014: Second Stage (Resumed) (5 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: When we discussed this previously, I was going through the Bill section by section. I had completed section 10 and was about to comment on section 12, so I will recommence at that point. Section 12 provides for the control by customs of persons entering or leaving the State and of their baggage. The section also provides for the operation of a red-green channel system, with which...