I thank the Senator for raising the issue of the promotion of competition in the banking and financial services market. It is not easy to balance the competing economic processes of consolidation and competition in any market, and the banking market is no different. We have seen some consolidation and it is also very difficult to promote and achieve competition during that process. However, as to the consolidation that is happening, there are new people and organisations providing a greater level of banking service…

Again, I thank Senator Byrne for raising this issue. While competition issues are primarily a matter for the CCPC, competitive pressures can clearly have an effect on the functioning of the financial system and the achievement of the Central Bank's aim, as can the ability of firms to enter and exit the system in an orderly manner. In light of the changing landscape for banking in Ireland, the Minister has instructed and commenced a broad-ranging review of the retail banking sector, which will also include the compe…

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of credit unions and the great role they have in society. Recent opinion polls have shown them to be the most trusted brand consistently over recent years. The Central Bank issued a report yesterday about the challenges facing credit unions so I will briefly bring people up to date on that. Credit unions' financial situation improved in the past year. Of the 210 credit unions in the country, all but nine were in surplus in the past 12 months, which is positive and is much im…

I thank the Deputy. On climate change, credit unions are exceptionally well placed to provide loans for retrofitting schemes for individual houses throughout the country. As regards the common bond, in 2017 CUAC made five recommendations to open up the common bond to assist credit unions in developing their business model and growth potential. Those recommendations included the removal of the anomaly whereby credit unions are prohibited from introducing businesses to each other but can introduce businesses to other…

The resistance came from the main representative bodies in the credit unions at the time, which did not want to touch the common bond because they felt it was established in the first place for very good reasons and they did not want to move on that. I have met all the representative bodies in the credit unions a few times in the past year and we now have movement from all the main credit union organisations on some refinement of the common bond boundaries and improvements to share and syndicate loans between diffe…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 95 and 164 together. The action plan for insurance reform contains 66 cross-departmental actions that aim to improve the cost and availability of insurance. This reform agenda is progressing well. The first implementation report published by the Tánaiste’s Department last July showed that 34 of the 66 actions had been completed. Key reforms include the establishment of the insurance fraud co-ordination office within An Garda Síochána in September and the publication of the final rep…

As the Deputy rightly says, the categories of car insurance and home insurance are separate from the issue of business insurance. There have been reductions in car insurance, which affects every household in the country, this year and since the guidelines came in. Three major insurance companies were at the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach this week. Two of them said they have reduced prices by 10% this year so far and another said it reduced them by over 5%. That is confirma…

I agree with the Deputies opposite when they talk about balancing the duty of care. Before we came in here, we had it already arranged that I will meet with the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, and the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, at the very beginning of the new year to progress that legislation. Work has already been done on it in consultation with the Attorney General. It is an absolute priority for the Government to get that legislation published as soon as possible. It is only fair to businesses.…

I thank the Deputy for raising what is a very important and timely issue at present affecting every household in the country. The final retail price of fuel is determined by a number of factors that include the costs of production, distribution, global market factors, international exchange rates, taxation, wholesale market contracts as well as individual retail pricing policies. The current spike in energy prices arises principally from the global recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in conjunction with supply cons…

It is important to put on the record that all the measures I have just mentioned, especially regarding the fuel allowance for many hundreds of thousands of households around the country who benefit to the tune of €914 from October to next April, are funded through the carbon tax. Those who oppose the carbon tax are trying to reduce the Government's ability to assist those households. We must be consistent. If we want funding to help people with the rising costs of energy, we must raise it through a carbon tax. It i…

The initiatives we announced this week specifically refer to the increased costs of working from home. The Finance Bill included some new measures of support for people working from home. The previous scheme was very narrow, but we included a new scheme of statutory benefits in the Finance Bill that was passed in the House last night. There are benefits for people working from home in recognition of the extra costs involved. In terms of people being able to afford the extra costs, an increase in the minimum wage is…

I understand the issue concerning having a buffer in place to address the volatility in prices, many of the causes of which are outside our control. The ESRI stated again this morning that it expects the inflation rate to peak by the end of the first quarter. I know that means we will continue to have rising prices, but as the year progresses, some of the issues that have emerged in terms of world supply and Covid will ease. I hope that will be some help. In terms of a buffer, that is why we have carbon tax increas…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 97 and 100 together. At the outset, I am sure the Deputies will appreciate that neither I nor the Central Bank can interfere in the provision or pricing of insurance products, nor do we have the power to direct insurance companies to provide cover to specific individuals at specific prices. Everybody knows it would be deemed gross interference in the market. With regard to the impact that the withdrawal of the UK from the EU may have had on the general liability market in Ireland, I…

On the duty of care, it is an immediate priority. It is one of the biggest single outstanding actions in the action plan that we announced 12 months ago. I would hope that by the end of January we will have a firm date. There is a meeting of the Cabinet subgroup dealing with this issue towards the end of January, by which time we will have a full review of 2021. I expect that at that date we will have a clear timeline. I do not have a date today because it is subject to legal discussion between Department officials…

I thank Deputy Ó Murchú for raising that timely issue. Before I came in here, we made a phone call to Lapland. The Government in Lapland has told us there is no insurance required whatever for anybody in Lapland who ever has an accident, which has never happened because Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus make sure that all the helpers are fully protected, so there has never been an insurance claim. That policy will be carried out, no matter where they go in the world. I think the United Nations made that clear decades ago.…

While competition issues generally are primarily a matter for the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, competitive pressures in the banking sector can clearly have an effect on the functioning of the financial system and on the quality and price of credit and other banking services provided to customers. It is accepted that the Irish retail banking system is relatively concentrated by international standards and the recent decisions by some banks to leave the Irish market will further impact on this. How…

As I said, there has been a reduction, although I understand the Deputy’s point that despite the 2.73% rate available since October this year, it is higher than European norms. In truth, the reason for that is multifaceted. While the credit risks and capital requirements in Ireland are elevated due to the historic loan experience and loss experience, the level of non-performing loans is higher in Ireland relative to other European countries, which affects the cost of mortgages. I do not know why that is the case bu…

On that issue generally, the European Central Bank, ECB, has a much greater role in overseeing and regulating the Irish banks. As time progresses the ECB will try to equalise all the issues with reserves across the various member states. We have had a historic higher level of defaulting, we had a higher level of people not paying mortgages and we still have a higher level of arrears, relative to other EU countries. As long as that is the case, it will have a knock-on effect on those people who are paying the intere…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 101, 123, 130 and 141 together. Institutional investment in the commercial and residential property market continues to be critically important to ensure the ongoing supply of new housing. This is particularly the case in areas where there are viability challenges, in the area of high-density urban apartments for example. As with investment funds generally, tax occurs primarily at the level of the investor rather than within the fund and it is important to make that point. That is w…

I thank the Deputies for continuing to raise this issue. The essence of my point all along has been that the beneficial owners are the people who pay the tax by and large. The VAT and other small taxes are paid directly by the fund. There is a strong withholding tax regime in place for the transfer of funds. For example, in the Irish REITs market, including Hibernia, IRES and Yew Grove, the amount of gross dividend withholding tax paid was €15.3 million in 2021; €13.4 million in 2020; and €12.2 million in 2019. The…