Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour)
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68. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will contact the banks to urge them to adopt a charter whereby citizens can opt for a basic current account that will cost no more than a maximum of 100 euro per annum; if he will work with the institutions to encourage them to operate a basic account for those on very low incomes or State supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35959/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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As part of my Department’s Strategy for Financial Inclusion, a basic payment account (named the Standard Bank Account) was offered by three banks (AIB, Bank of Ireland and Permanent TSB) in three pilot locations (New Ross, Tallaght and Tullamore) during 2012. The Financial Inclusion Working Group, chaired by my Department, was tasked with governance of the project. The Standard Bank Account (SBA) Pilot finished on 31 March 2013 after a 9-month pilot period. The report of the Financial Inclusion Working Group on the Pilot is being finalised and will be submitted for my consideration shortly. I expect that the Report will be presented to Government and later published on my Department’s website.

Through the Financial Inclusion Working Group, my Department will work closely with all stakeholders over the coming months to optimise the availability of the Standard Bank Account nationally. The Standard Bank Account will either be a low cost or a no cost account, the exact details need to be agreed with all stakeholders. The aim of the strategy is to ensure that financially excluded persons may access the benefits of the financial system through having their own bank accounts.