Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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215. To ask the Minister for Finance if the first of the promissory notes bonds of €500 million has been sold and if not, if he will instruct the Central Bank of Ireland to put a stay an any such sale until after the legality or otherwise of the original promissory notes has been established in court. [39688/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I have been advised by the Central Bank that the portfolio of Government bonds now held by the Bank following the liquidation of IBRC will be sold as soon as possible, provided conditions of financial stability permit. The Bank has, however, undertaken that a minimum amount of bonds will be sold in accordance with the following schedule: to end 2014 (€0.5bn), 2015-2018 (€0.5bn p.a.), 2019-2023 (€1bn p.a.), 2024 and after (€2bn p.a.). This portfolio includes both the floating rate bonds exchanged for the Promissory Notes and holdings of the 2025 Irish Government bond acquired from the Bank of Ireland on the termination of its market repo with IBRC due to the latter’s liquidation. The Central Bank normally reports in detail on its balance sheet only at annual intervals, although it also publishes an aggregate balance sheet on a monthly basis. The latter, however, does not contain details of its investment holdings and I am not in a position to comment on the question of sales.

On the question of putting a stay on any sales, it is important to note that the Central Bank is an independent institution and is not subject to my instruction on such matters.