Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Question 71: To ask the Minister for Finance the steps he will take with the PTSB in relation to the levels of variable interest applied which is pushing thousands of homeowners into arrears. [12067/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The lending institutions in Ireland, including those in which the State has a significant shareholding, are independent commercial entities.

Ultimately the pricing of financial products, including standard variable mortgage interest rates, is a commercial decision for the management team and board of each lending institution, having due regard to their customers and the impact on profitability, particularly where the cost of funding to each lending institution, including deposit pricing, is under pressure.

Neither the Central Bank nor I have any responsibility for any variation in the variable mortgage interest rates charged by Permanent TSB. However, as I have indicated in replies to previous Parliamentary Questions on this subject, the Central Bank has advised me that it will continue to engage with specific lenders which appear to have standard variable rates set disproportionate to their cost of funds.