Results 8,921-8,940 of 26,737 for speaker:John McGuinness

Topical Issue Debate: Mental Health Services Provision (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: That is not good enough. The Minister of State has not addressed any of the issues. As I said to him, there are 44 beds and 51 patients. How can the Minister of State tell me that is good health care, whether for mental health or otherwise? How can he say to a family waiting for a counsellor for three to six months that is satisfactory? I respect that the note the Minister of State read...

Topical Issue Debate: Mental Health Services Provision (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: I recently attended a protest outside the department of psychiatry, St. Luke's General Hospital, Kilkenny, with members of the Psychiatric Nurses Association. They were protesting about the quality of care that they are able to give to patients in that facility. I have visited patients at this facility for a long time but it has not been updated. It requires significant capital expenditure...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: We propose to deal with the tracker mortgage issue first so the Minister's opening statement should deal with that. Then we will deal with the reform piece and the Minister should read an opening statement related to that issue. We have to finish at 4.45 p.m. and the new politics mean our activity is confined. In the interests of democracy, our discussion is cut back and we cannot have...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: I wish to ask the Minister about the tracker mortgage numbers. At various stages during these committee hearings, members were assured that the peak had been reached in relation to case numbers, and that "This was it", only to be told a short time later of the huge increases in the number of those affected. We are now at the level of numbers that had been predicted by Padraic Kissane when...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: From what banks?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Does the Central Bank share its meeting minutes with the Department?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Bank of Ireland and AIB-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Does the Minister get those?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: What does that unit in the Department do with the minutes? Does the unit examine them thoroughly? Does it bring matters from those minutes to the attention of the Minister or are they just filed away?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Was anything found in the minutes from the banks we are currently speaking about that gave any indication of cartel-like activity under way in the context of the tracker issue, dating back from that time?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Would that unit-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Does the Minister's officials in the unit who read the minutes feel they are getting the full picture, in the minutes, of the bank meetings? Is there an indication that they are getting just barely the amount of information to satisfy the fact that they have to give the minutes to the Department?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: I want to put on record my support for Deputy Pearse Doherty's view that until such time as cases are taken against individuals within the banks over what happened with the tracker mortgage issues, the public will not be satisfied and the banks will not clean up their act or their culture. From dealing with the banks in this committee it seems to me that as they get more profitable and back...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Until we get banking and banker accountability and transparency, we will not know what is going on within those banks and what arrangements they are making. Is there any merit in having an ethical officer appointed within each of the banks by the Minister and paid for by the banks, as one would have in similar institutions in the financial services sector?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: We will have an opportunity to engage with the Minister again on this issue.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: The same applies to the Central Bank, in terms of how it conducts its business. We set out legislation for risk officers. One such risk officer was Mr. Jonathan Sugarman and we met the Central Bank recently on this. Mr. Sugarman reported breaches of the regulations to the Central Bank and he followed the letter of the law in terms of the legislation. He was the one who found himself being...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: What about Capita and Pepper and the agents that would manage on their behalf?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: Okay. I want to ask the Minister a question on foot of that. Any of the vulture funds that we have invited here have refused to come before us. Capita and Pepper are considering the invitation. As they are regulated entities working on behalf of the vulture funds, I would like to see the Department in any exchanges it might have with them insisting that they take up the invitation to be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Tracker Mortgages: Discussion (16 Jan 2018)

John McGuinness: It is good to hear that Minister. I will put on record again the need for organisations such as Capita and Pepper to consider our invitations to give their side of the story because we need to understand what is happening within their organisations as well.