Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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314.To ask the Minister for Finance if he will report on the implementation of the programme for Government commitments under the remit of his Department.[34008/24]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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My Department’s Statement of Strategy reflects the national priorities outlined in the Programme for Government (PfG). In this regard, the Department’s mission is to lead in the achievement of the Government’s economic, fiscal and financial policy goals. In delivering this mission, the Department’s current Statement of Strategy 2023-2025 focuses on the role the Department plays in delivering the following priorities:

• Balanced, sustainable economic growth,
• Sound public finances,
• Well regulated, sustainable banking and financial sector,
• International leadership in economic, fiscal and financial decision making, and
• Promoting environmentally sustainable economic progress

Covid-19 related support schemes: A range of unprecedented proactive and pro-cyclical interventions to support the economy during the pandemic, all of which were made possible by the prudent management of the public finances in the pre-Covid years. In continuing to work with the banking industry and nonbank lenders to support customers during and after the Covid-19 crisis, the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) launched the €1.2bn Ukraine Credit Guarantee Scheme in March 2023. The €500 million Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme was launched in September 2023.

Budget 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024: The unforeseen challenges of Ukraine, the ongoing recovery from the pandemic and the continuing fallout from Brexit were addressed from a position of strength with record levels of employment and a budget surplus. The Tax Debt Warehousing Scheme, as introduced in 2020, allowed certain debts, mainly VAT, PAYE (Employer) debts and certain self-assessed income tax liabilities, incurred during the period of restricted trading caused by Covid-19 to be ‘parked’ on an interest free basis. The Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS) was introduced in Finance Act 2022 as part of a suite of Government measures to counteract the impact on businesses of increased energy costs which arose as a result of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Cost of living challenges: By responding swiftly and decisively to the cost of living challenges, Government supports have helped to mitigate the impact of inflationary pressures on both businesses and households. Budget 2023 was a ‘Cost of Living Budget’ focused on mitigating inflationary pressures. Budget 2024 provided €2.7 billion in once-off cost of living measures for 2024, which built upon some €12 billion in direct relief made available to households and businesses since the beginning of 2022.

Retail Banking Review: The review of the Retail Banking sector was completed in 2022 and 2023 saw the move to work on implementation of its 34 recommendations, which are now Government policy. A key issue identified by the Retail Banking Review was access to cash, both the ability to withdraw and deposit cash, and a number of recommendations address this. There is a dedicated team in place working on this issue and the Finance (Provision of Access to Cash Infrastructure) Bill 2024 has been published.

Another related issue was a recommendation for the Department to lead on the development of a National Payments Strategy (NPS) that will take account of the changing landscape and determine how best to adapt to it. The NPS will set out a roadmap for the future evolution of the entire payments system, and will also take account of the EU legislative landscape, including existing proposals on instant payments, payment services, legal tender and the Digital Euro. One of the aims of the NPS is to ensure that the Irish payment system is resilient and it can be trusted both by its retail participants and consumers alike. The final strategy will be published in late summer 2024.

Taxation: The independent Commission on Taxation and Welfare (COTW) was established in 2021 and was tasked by Government to independently consider how best the taxation and welfare systems can support economic activity and promote increased employment and prosperity while ensuring that there are sufficient resources available to meet the costs of the public services and supports in the medium and longer term. “Foundations for the Future”, the Report of the COTW, was published on 14 September 2022. The report contains over 500 pages and 116 recommendations regarding the future of our taxation and welfare systems.

International Tax Reform: The agreement reached by Ireland with approximately 140 other jurisdictions through the OECD Inclusive Framework in 2021 represents an important step towards resolving the issues brought about by the digitalisation of the economy and is intended to provide certainty for multinational enterprises whose business models are so important for the Irish economy. There are two pillars to this agreement. The EU Minimum Tax Directive was implemented through the Finance (No.2) Bill 2023, making good on Ireland’s commitment to deliver Pillar Two of the OECD agreement. Ireland welcomed the publication of the Multilateral Convention (MLC) by the OECD, demonstrating the substantial progress made on all aspects of Pillar One. I look forward to that work being finalised shortly and the opening of the MLC for signature in due course.

Credit Unions: A review of the policy framework within which Credit Unions operate has been completed. The review included extensive stakeholder engagement and the Credit Union Amendment Act 2023, which was signed into law in December 2023, and implements the proposals emanating from the review. The Act represents a very significant piece of legislation that will have far-reaching positive implications for the credit union sector in the years to come.

State’s Shareholding in the Banking Sector: The Department of Finance manages the State’s remaining investments in the banking sector. In relation to the shareholdings in the three domestic banks, the State exited its shareholding in Bank of Ireland during 2022 recovering almost €6.7bn in cash from its €4.7bn investment in and support for the bank. In the case of AIB, share sales resumed at the beginning of 2022 for the first time since the IPO in 2017 and since then the State’s shareholding in AIB has reduced from c. 71.1% to c. 25.5% currently, a total of c. €16.1bn has been recovered from the State’s investment in AIB so far. The shareholding in PTSB has reduced from 75% to 57.4% currently.

NAMA: The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) transferred €350 million to the Exchequer in December 2023. This brings the Agency transfers to the State to a cumulative total of €4.25 billion; €3.85 billion cash from its lifetime surplus and over €400 million in corporation tax payments.

Housing: Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI) was established to increase the supply of new homes for owner-occupiers, renters and social housing by providing funding on commercial terms to house builders for commercially viable developments throughout Ireland. It has grown total loan approvals to €1.66bn at the end of December 2023, an increase of 33% on the €1.25bn at the end of 2022. HBFI has exceeded the 5-year target set by the Government at its inception in 2019, approving funding for 8,495 homes over that period versus a target of 7,500. A second strategic review of HBFI was published in May 2023 and found that HBFI has had a positive impact on access to development finance.

The Help to Buy scheme was extended in Finance (No.2) Act 2023 for a further year to the end of 2025. In addition, an amendment was made to the scheme in 2023 to enhance the interaction of the scheme with the Local Authority Affordable Purchase (LAAP) Scheme. This amendment will enable the use of the affordable dwelling contribution received through the LAAP scheme for the purposes of calculating the 70 per cent loan-to value requirement, thereby facilitating access to a greater number of LAAP purchasers to the Help to Buy scheme.

Climate: My Department is committed to contributing to the Government’s Climate agenda. A dedicated Climate Unit was established in 2021. The unit manages the Department’s overall engagement on climate at national and international level, including inputting to the development of the Climate Action Plan.

Insurance Reform: A key focus has been the implementation of the pro-consumer Action Plan for Insurance Reform, which set out actions across several departmental policy areas. The vast majority of the actions are now complete, including all 13 principle actions, and all those assigned to the Department of Finance.

Developing the fintech sector: ‘Ireland for Finance’ is the strategy for the development of Ireland’s international financial services sector to 2025. At the end of 2023, IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland estimated that direct employment in the sector – the primary tool by which the strategy measures the benefit of the international financial services sector to Ireland – stood at around 57,600. This is an increase of approximately 2,000 in the estimated numbers employed compared with at the end of 2022.

Legislative agenda: In advancing the Government’s legislative agenda, and while not a fully comprehensive list, legislation enacted since 2020 includes the following:

- Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Act 2024

- Finance (State Guarantees, International Financial Institution Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2024

- Central Bank (Individual Accountability Framework) Act 2023

- Credit Union (Amendment) Act 2023

- Consumer Protection (Regulation of Retail Credit and Credit Servicing Firms) Act 2022

- Insurance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2022

- Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Act 2021

- Finance (European Stability Mechanism and Single Resolution Fund) Act 2021

- Financial Provisions (Covid-19) Act 2020

- Investment Limited Partnerships (Amendment) Act 2020

Additional information on my Department’s achievements each year is available in its annual reports which are available on the gov.ie website. Further detail on the strategic framework that underpins the policy achievements is available in the Department of Finance Statement of Strategy 2023-2025 on the gov.ie site. In this regard, it should be noted that, following my recent appointment as Minister for Finance, a new Strategy Statement is being developed.