Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is lovely to see the Minister of State in the Chamber. I congratulate her on her new role and wish her well.

As we all know too well in Ireland, misconduct by those in the banking sector has the potential to destabilise the entire country. We are 15 years on from the banking crisis. In those 15 years, we have evidence that the culture of greed and impunity within the banking sector has not abated. The tracker mortgage scandal of recent years saw banks knowingly overcharging customers, in some cases by tens of thousands of euro by denying them better mortgage rates to which they were legally entitled. Even after they were found out, they doubled down on it. In 2017, we heard how a widowed father of five was pursued by Bank of Ireland through the courts for the repossession of his home, despite the bank admitting he was overcharged as a result of this scandal. The tracker mortgage scandal was evidence of a concerted, wilful strategy by the banks to cheat customers out of their money. An accountability framework is welcome and overdue. The provisions in the Bill that allow executives to be pursued for up to six years after the resignation are particularly important while the longer window for accountability is a positive step. However, I wonder if the six-year statute of limitations is long enough. White-collar crime is complex and requires detailed, time-consuming investigations to uncover.I worry that a six-year period is insufficient. For example, in the tracker mortgage scandal customer accounts were impacted as long ago as 2004. We have to ask if executives who made money from corruption a decade ago are to be exempt. I and my Civil Engagement Group colleagues look forward to engaging with the specifics of the legislation on Committee Stage.

Much of the detail of the accountability regime will be set out within Central Bank regulations rather than the primary legislation. That means we are unable to scrutinise all the specifics-----