Vol. 405 No. 3
106 Mr. McCartan asked the Minister for Finance if he will outline for each of the past ten years, the total value of loans written off by the ACC; the steps which are being taken to reduce the level of loans required to be written off; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The Agricultural Credit Corporation are a commercial financial institution and as such should not be placed at any disadvantage to their competitors. Accordingly, it would not be appropriate to reveal the total value of loans written off by the corporation. The corporation apply rigorous loan assessment criteria in their lending activities and have specific procedures in place to ensure the timely repayment of loans.
I am pleased to have the opportunity to reveal that, at the request of my Department, the Central Bank recently carried out an examination of the loan book of the ACC's operation. While it was not an exhaustive examination of the loan book the Central Bank were satisfied with the systems and the level of controls in operation. They also stated that the corporation had a satisfactory policy of providing for loans at risk.
