Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

Section 8(1)(b) of this Bill, which proposes the insertion of a new section 41(10) into the Companies Act 1990, acknowledges the existing legal powers of the Financial Regulator to make appropriate changes to its rules and other instruments in order to ensure the effective regulation of licensed banks. I understand the regulator is proposing to amend the conditions it attaches to its banking licence to require increased disclosure in the annual accounts of banks of the giving of loans to directors and other connected people. The amendment that I propose in the Bill as initiated clarified that any company law disclosure requirement imposed on companies that are licensed banks did not override the independent rule-making powers of the Financial Regulator. The verb I used in the Bill referred to rules etc. that are made under the Central Bank Acts. The proposed new wording widens this to cover all rules etc. made, issued, granted or otherwise created. My intention in this proposed amendment to the Bill is to widen the provision so that there is no doubt that it includes all relevant actions that the regulator can avail of under its own legislative powers.