Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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81. To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which he remains satisfied that the main banks are making adequate resources available to facilitate the urgently required house building programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2328/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, Government policy is focused on ensuring that all viable small and medium sized businesses have access to an appropriate supply of credit from a diverse range of bank and non-bank sources.  The Deputy will also be aware that, in my role as Minister for Finance, I have no direct function in the relationship between the banks and their customers.  Also, I have no statutory function in relation to the banking decisions made by individual lending institutions at any particular time and these are taken by the board and management of the relevant institution. This includes decisions in relation to products as determined by the banks.

All viable businesses operating in Ireland should have the opportunity to access sufficient finance to meet their enterprise needs in a manner that supports growth and employment in the economy.  As the Deputy will be aware, Chapter 7 (Finance for Growth) of the Action Plan for Jobs 2016 (APJ) set out a range of commitments to ensure viable SMEs can access appropriate finance at a reasonable cost from both bank and non-bank sources. Finance for Growth will again feature in the Action Plan for Jobs 2017 and a number of actions have been proposed by my Department for inclusion in relation to this.

In line with Action 144 of the APJ 2016, officials from my Department collated and examined data from AIB and Bank of Ireland on a monthly basis, including data pertaining to the various sectors. Furthermore, my officials meet the banks on a quarterly basis to ensure an informed understanding of the wider SME bank lending environment which assists the development and implementation of policies aimed at ensuring SME access to finance and increased competition in the SME lending sector.

I note that the data recently published by the Central Bank of Ireland for Credit Advanced to Irish Resident Small and Medium Sized Enterprises shows that new lending to Property Investment/Development enterprises for Q1 to Q3 2016 totalled €961 million a growth of €582 million (c. 154%) when compared to the same period in 2015. This data can be found in Table A.14.1 Credit Advanced to Irish Resident Small and Medium Sized Enterprises published on the Central Bank's website.

The Deputy may also wish to note that in the social housing market, in line with the commitment contained in "Rebuilding Ireland", the NTMA and key Government Departments are examining the feasibility of establishing a funding vehicle in conjunction with the private sector, which could facilitate investment in social housing.

The Government remains committed to the SME sector, including those involved in Property Investment/Development, and sees it as the key engine of ongoing economic growth. I can assure the Deputy that my Department, working with other relevant Departments, Bodies and Agencies, such as the Credit Review Office, will continue to advance policies to ensure the availability of both bank and non-bank credit so as to ensure that viable Irish SMEs have sufficient access to finance.