Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 January 2018
149. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Finance the status of the public banking investigation undertaken by his Department in conjunction with the Department of Rural and Community Development; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4155/18]
View answer166. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Finance the status of the public banking investigation undertaken by his Department in conjunction with the Department of Rural and Community Development; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4309/18]
View answer168. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 11 of 30 November 2017, the progress of the public banking investigation; when the report by his Department and the Department of Rural and Community Development will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4042/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 149, 166 and 168 together.
As the Deputy is aware, my Department, along with the Department of Rural and Community Development are assigned the responsibility of fulfilling the Programme for a Partnership Government commitment to "thoroughly investigate the German Sparkassen model for the development of local public banks that operate within well-defined regions".
Local public banking means that there is state or some other form of public ownership of a bank or other financial institution. Sparkassen are German local public banks. They are only permitted to operate in particular geographic regions local to them. Their business model is to promote economic development and financial inclusion in the particular regional area in which they operate, not just profit maximisation. Part of this business model also includes building close relationships with SMEs in their region of operation.
As part of the investigation of local public banking, a consultation process involving engagement with stakeholders and interested parties was conducted last year by the Department of Rural and Community Development, with assistance from my Department.
The investigation has also included an analysis of a proposal for a potential model of local public banking, based on the German model, in Ireland. This proposal was put forward by Irish Rural Link and the Savings Banks Foundation for International Cooperation (SBFIC), the international development wing of the Sparkassen group. Officials in my Department, and the Department of Rural and Community Development, have met with representatives from Irish Rural Link and SBFIC on a number of occasions.
Officials in both departments have been working closely together and have finalised a report on their investigation on local public banking. My colleague, the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Michael Ring T.D., and I are currently considering the report. We anticipate being able to jointly submit the report to Government, for approval, in the near future.
There are significant Government measures in place to support Irish SMEs and my Department is working with other Government departments to develop tailored and innovative schemes to meet their needs. The Deputy may rest assured that supporting access to finance by Irish SMEs and promoting rural employment development remains an important Government priority.
