Written Answers Nos. 46 - 56
46. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Finance the status of discussions with the Irish League of Credit Unions on its proposals to release funds for social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8860/16]
View answerThe Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is the Department primarily responsible for the formulation and implementation of policy and the preparation of legislation in relation to housing.
My Department has received a number of different proposals from the Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) and from the Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU). Proposals from both representative bodies, in relation to the funding of social housing, are at various stages of development.
In respect of the ILCU proposal, I have been informed that Minister Alan Kelly and Minister of State Paudie Coffey at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government met with ILCU in December 2015 to discuss its proposal around funding of social housing developments. There have been a number of follow-up meetings between officials from my Department and the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government to consider any potential regulatory or legislative implications of credit union becoming involved in social housing funding.
Two alternative models of funding were proposed by ILCU in relation to social housing and it was determined that the second of the two models would be best placed to achieve the objective of providing a mechanism for investment in social housing without negatively impacting on the General Government Balance, and keeping the funding 'off-balance sheet'. It was agreed that ILCU would progress the preferred model, with both Departments indicating their availability should any assistance be required regarding technical advice or further information.
The Registrar of Credit Unions at the Central Bank is the independent regulator of credit unions, and ultimately any decision around credit unions providing such fundung would require regulatory approval prior to implementation.
The Government recognises the important role of credit unions as a volunteer co-operative movement in this country. The Government's priorities remain the protection of members' savings, the financial stability of credit unions and the sector overall and it is determined to support a strengthened and growing credit union movement.
47. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the degree to which he monitors house property prices, with particular reference to the need to ensure that such prices do not become a major governing economic influence as in the past; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8922/16]
View answerAccording to the Central Statistics Office's Residential Property Price Index, the price of residential property increased by 0.3 per cent nationally between February and March. Over the month of March, property prices increased by 0.9 per cent in Dublin and decreased by 0.2 per cent outside of Dublin.
On an annual basis, national property prices increased by 7.4 per cent in March 2016, compared with annual growth of 16.8 per cent over the same period in 2015. The moderation in property price growth has been driven by price developments in Dublin. In the 12 months to March 2016, the growth in Dublin property prices was 3.9 per cent, compared with growth of 22.8 per cent over the same period in 2015.
I wish to assure the Deputy that my Department continues to monitor developments in the property market, including house prices. The Government remains committed to addressing the outstanding bottlenecks in the housing market. In this regard the 'Stabilising Rents and Boosting Supply' package, announced in November 2015, includes a number of measures to support sustainable growth in housing supply and provide greater stability in the rental market over the short run. The package of measures builds upon and complements the Government's overall strategic approach to addressing bottlenecks in the housing market as set out in 'Construction 2020: A Strategy for A Renewed Construction Sector'.
48. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the extent to which he monitors credit needs in all aspects of the business sector, without exception; if he is satisfied that these needs are being fully met in line with economic requirements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8923/16]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, small businesses play a central role in the sustainable recovery of the Irish economy. To facilitate this, Government policy is focused on ensuring that all viable SMEs have access to an appropriate supply of credit from a diverse range of bank and non-bank sources. Officials from my Department regularly meet representatives from the Small Firms Association, Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association and Chambers Ireland to discuss issues around access to finance.
AIB and Bank of Ireland are concentrating on growing their balance sheets. In this context, both banks recognise the need to increase business lending and have put on record their commitment to the SME sector. The most recent Department of Finance SME credit demand survey, covering the period April-September 2015, shows that 85% of SME credit applications, excluding pending applications, were approved. Further results from the survey can be found at www.finance.gov.ie.
My Department has been involved in a range of initiatives to encourage access to credit for small and medium sized businesses. The SME State Bodies Group provides a forum for the development and implementation of policy measures to enhance SMEs' access to a stable and appropriate supply of finance.
Some of the main policies introduced to encourage access to credit for small and medium businesses include:
- The Supporting SMEs Online Tool, a cross-government initiative, was launched in May 2014. On answering 8 simple questions, the small business will receive a list of available Government supports. The Supporting SMEs Online Tool is available at www.supportingsmes.ie.
- The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland has been established as a means of ensuring that SMEs are provided with sufficient finance for growth. The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) is an initiative designed to increase the availability of funding to SMEs at a lower cost and on more flexible terms then have recently been available on the Irish Market in recent times. The SBCI does not lend directly to SMEs. It uses a network of lending partners known as 'on lenders' to make its funds available to SMEs. More information on the SBCI can be found on www.sbci.gov.ie.
- The Credit Guarantee Scheme encourages additional lending to small businesses by offering a partial Government guarantee to banks against losses on qualifying loans to eligible SMEs.
- The Microenterprise Loan Fund, administered by Microfinance Ireland, provides support in the form of loans for up to €25,000, available to start-up, newly established, or growing micro enterprises employing less than 10 people, with viable business propositions. Microfinance Ireland works in partnership with the Local Enterprise Offices nationally to administer this fund (www.microfinanceireland.ie).
- The Credit Review Office helps SME or Farm borrowers who have had an application for credit of up to €3 million declined or reduced by the main banks, and who feel that they have a viable business proposition. They also examine cases where borrowers feel that the terms and conditions of their existing loan, or a new loan offer, are unfairly onerous or have been unreasonably changed to their detriment. This is a strictly confidential process between the business, the Credit Review Office and the bank. The Credit Reviewer and his team have overturned more than 50% of the refusals that have been appealed to the Office. Further details are available at www.creditreview.ie.
My Department and the Credit Review Office, working with the other relevant Departments and Agencies, will continue to monitor the availability of both bank and non-bank credit on both a macro and sectoral basis in order to ensure that sufficient access to finance is available to facilitate participants in the SME sector to reach their full potential in terms of growth and employment generation.
49. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Finance his views on the unreasonably high insurance premia for taxi drivers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8929/16]
View answerThe provision of insurance cover and the price at which it is offered is a commercial matter for insurance companies and is based on an assessment of the risks they are willing to accept and adequate provisioning to meet those risks.
As Minister for Finance, I am responsible for the development of the legal framework governing financial regulation. Neither I, nor the Central Bank of Ireland, may interfere in the terms of provision of insurance products. The EU framework for insurance expressly prohibits Member States from adopting rules which require insurance companies to obtain prior approval of the pricing, or terms and conditions of an insurance product.
Insurance Ireland operates a free Insurance Information Service for those who have queries, complaints or difficulties in relation to obtaining insurance. In the event that a person is unable to obtain a quotation for motor insurance or feels that the premium proposed or the terms are so excessive that it amounts to a refusal to give them motor insurance, they should contact Insurance Ireland, 5 Harbourmaster Place, IFSC, Dublin 1, Telephone +353 1 6761820 quoting the Declined Cases Agreement.
I would also like to add that my Department has commenced a Review of Policy in the Insurance Sector. This is being undertaken in consultation with the Central Bank, Departments and Agencies and other relevant stakeholders. The objective of the Review is to recommend measures to improve the functioning and regulation of the insurance sector. This Review will include an examination of the factors contributing to the cost of insurance.
Work on the Review will continue over the coming months and is expected to be completed by the end of this year. The final report will be presented to Government in due course.
50. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Finance the steps he is taking to replace the rates system and create a self-assessment system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8963/16]
View answerI have no responsibility for the valuation process within the context of the rates system. Such issues are a matter for the Valuation Office, which comes under the remit of the Department of Justice.
51. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 97 of 20 April 2016, if he is aware of the number and value of approved mortgages by banks (details supplied) that are outside the normal 80% cap for non-first-time buyers or the equivalent cap for first-time buyers under the Central Bank of Ireland's macro prudential lending rules to date; and to provide details for the respective banks, in tabular form. [8999/16]
View answer52. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 97 of 20 April 2016, if he is not aware of the number and value of approved mortgages by banks (details supplied) that are outside the normal 80% cap for non-first-time buyers or the equivalent cap for first-time buyers under the Central Bank of Ireland's macro prudential lending rules to date; and if he is dealing with these figures. [9000/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 51 and 52 together.
As advised in answer to the Deputy's previous PQ, the macro-prudential limits on mortgage lending are designed, implemented and monitored by the Central Bank in its role as regulator of the Irish banking sector, and therefore fall outside of my remit as Minister for Finance. Moreover, the Central Bank does not provide prudential lending disclosures on an industry-wide or institutional basis and there is no regulatory requirement for Banks to publicly disclose the value of approved mortgages that are exceptions to the macro-prudential limits. My role as Minister of Finance, as set out in the Relationship Framework Agreements between the Minister and the banks in which the State is a shareholder, does not involve me in the relationship between the banks and their regulator. As such neither I nor my Department have a direct role in this matter.
In relation to PTSB, the Group had €459m of new mortgage lending in 2015, as set out on page 8 of the Group's 2015 Financial Statements. I am further advised that the Group was compliant with the Central Bank of Ireland's macro prudential restrictions in the period up to December 2015 and that 11% of the qualifying loans were issued as LTV exemptions under the CBI macro prudential rules.
In relation to AIB, they had €1.7bn of new mortgage lending in Ireland in 2015, as set out on page 39 of its 2015 Financial Statements. While AIB does not disclose the specific detail requested, I have received assurances that the bank complied fully with Loan-to-Value (LTV) and Loan-to-Income (LTI) limits as set by the Central Bank of Ireland during the year to 31st December 2015, and that AIB continues to operate within the constraints set by its regulator.
53. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the amount paid by the State into the Insurance Compensation Fund for each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9030/16]
View answer54. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the amount paid to the State from the insurance levy for each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9031/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 53 and 54 together.
The purpose of the Insurance Compensation Fund (ICF) is to provide a certain minimum level of protection for insurance policy holders should an insurance company go into liquidation. The Fund also allows insurance company administrators to apply to the High Court for funding where necessary in order to enable them to meet their financial obligations as they arise.
The Central Bank of Ireland has responsibility under Section 6 of the Insurance Act 1964 to carry out an annual assessment of the needs of the Fund and, where it is of the opinion that the state of the Fund is such that financial support should be provided for it, it is allowed to determine an appropriate contribution to be paid to the Fund by each insurer, or insurer authorised in another Member State, in relation to insured risks in the State.
Where there are insufficient funds available to enable payments out of the Fund to be made expeditiously, Section 5 of the Insurance Act 1964 allows the Minister for Finance to advance the necessary monies to the Fund in the form of a repayable loan, on the recommendation of the Central Bank. Such advances are subject to interest charges.
The ICF Levy is paid into the Insurance Compensation Fund. The following table sets out the amounts advanced from the Exchequer to the ICF and amounts repaid from the ICF to the Exchequer for the period 2011 to 2015. These payments are published in table 1.7 of the annual audited financial statements of the Exchequer (the Finance Accounts) which are available on www.finance.gov.ie.
ICF Payments from and refunds to the Exchequer
|
Year |
Total amount issued from the Exchequer to the ICF |
Total amount repaid to the Exchequer from the ICF |
Total net amount issued from the Exchequer to the ICF/(received by Exchequer from ICF) |
|
2011 |
€280.0 million |
- |
€280.0 million |
|
2012 |
€455.5 million |
- |
€455.5 million |
|
2013 |
€197.8 million |
- |
€197.8 million |
|
2014 |
- |
€100 million |
(€100.0 million) |
|
2015 |
€79.0 million |
€100 million |
(€21.0 million) |
The following table sets out the amount of the ICF levy received in the years 2011 to 2015. The levy is set by the Central Bank at a current rate of 2% of gross written non-life insurance premiums received in respect of risk in the State.
There are no ICF levy payments recorded in the table for 2011, as the levy was re-introduced in January 2012.
Total ICF levy received
|
Year |
Total levy received by the ICF |
|
2011 |
- |
|
2012 |
€45,565,922.16 |
|
2013 |
€64,637,003.01 |
|
2014 |
€65,669,623.35 |
|
2015 |
€70,741,870.17 |
These figures, which are submitted to me annually by the Accountant of the Courts of Justice, are laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and published annually on my Department's website in the annual Report on the Administration of the Insurance Compensation Fund.
55. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the amount of fees paid to the administrators of a company (details supplied) for each of the years since it went into administration, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9032/16]
View answerIn 2010, Joint Administrators were appointed by the High Court, at the request of the Central Bank of Ireland, because of concerns about the solvency position of Quinn Insurance Limited (QIL).
The following table sets out the total fees and costs incurred by the Joint Administrators of QIL for the period 2010 to 2015.
All amounts paid to the Joint Administrators are submitted to and approved by the President of the High Court.
|
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
€'000 |
5,637 |
7,533 |
2,668 |
2,852 |
1,105 |
841 |
The overall reduction in the fees since 2011 reflects the sale of assets and portfolio transfer.
56. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the amount raised from the levies on insurance policies in each of the years 2011 to 2015, in tabular form; if the figures reflect both the gross receipts and the net receipts, less the cost and expenses of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9033/16]
View answerThe following table sets out the amounts collected in respect of the various types of insurance related levies for the years requested by the Deputy.
The nature of the stamp duty levies are such that the insurance company calculates the levy by reference to the value of the premiums paid on those policies (or in the case of the Health Insurance Levy by reference to the number of persons insured under a policy) which fall within the definition of insurance policy for the purposes of a particular levy. Therefore, there are no gross or net receipts, as the amount to be paid has to represent the company's full liability to the levy for the period. Of course, from time to time errors are made which result in refunds, off-sets and additional payments being made, but it not considered that such adjustments are relevant to the question.
Because Revenue operates its tax collection systems at an integrated customer level it does not measure the cost of collection at individual 'taxhead' level.
|
Description |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
€m |
€m |
€m |
€m |
€m |
|
Insurance Policies |
2.5 |
1.8 |
2.5 |
2.0 |
2.2 |
|
Non-Life Insurance Levy |
106.4 |
104.2 |
98.7 |
103.4 |
108.0 |
|
Life Assurance Levy |
32.0 |
24.1 |
25.0 |
27.6 |
31.0 |
|
Health Insurance Levy |
347.0 |
436.8 |
172.6 |
-0.2 |
-3.3 |
