Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

I agree with what previous speakers have said on this issue. It is obscene that the banks are charging anything from 16% to 20% interest on credit cards and in some cases, as Senator McDowell said, surcharges also apply. The Government should directly tackle the banks on the interest they charge on credit cards.

I fully agree with what has been said about the interest being charged to small businesses which are under more pressure now than ever before. The manufacturers of giftware alone are under enormous pressure. A manufacturer of giftware in Galway, Carrigaline Pottery, which has been in existence for the past 50 to 60 years, is ready to close; Tipperary Crystal is up for sale; a company which manufacturers jewellery in Dublin is ready to close; and workers in Waterford Glass are not working one week in every six weeks. The giftware industry is under enormous pressure. We are nearing the day where no giftware will be manufactured in Ireland and any giftware that will be sold here or sold on behalf of companies here will be outsourced in countries such as Taiwan, South Africa, the Middle East and so on. These small companies are under enormous pressure from banks to close. They are under pressure on a number of fronts, not least because of high interest rates, but also because of high insurance premia and other costs.

The high cost of insurance is an area that should also be tackled. If we can put pressure on banks to bring down the cost of interest rates, surely we can put pressure on insurance companies to bring down the cost of insurance, given that high insurance premia place enormous pressure on companies.

I fully agree with what has been said about small businesses. They are being ripped off by banks and they have to pay enormously high interest rates over and above the interest rates that have been set. In many cases, they also have to pay surcharges. This is an area the Govenrment should examine. Perhaps we again need a State rescue bank. We had one a number of years ago, but it closed.

There are quite a number of small businesses in the manufacturing area, and I outlined a number in the giftware sector. The people engaged in those businesses are under severe pressure. Perhaps this is an area where the Government could step in with a rescue package. I fully support what other people have said. I thank the Minister of State for his contribution and the Leader of the House for taking this matter.