asked the Minister for Finance in the light of the necessity to boost economic growth and the role played by the availability of capital at a reasonable cost in this process, if he thinks that it may be appropriate for the Government to intervene to hold down interest rates, taking as a precedent the Government's intervention in 1980 when it had recourse to Euro currency loans.
Written Answers. - Interest Rates.
53.
The Central Bank of Ireland has primary responsibility for bank interest rates. Despite recent increases, these rates are still about 2 percentage points below their end-1984 level.
A number of loan schemes, based on foreign borrowings from the EIB and other sources, are still in operation through the Industrial Credit Corporation and the Agricultural Credit Corporation and are providing funds at attractive rates of interest for industry and agribusiness.