Banking report provides "valuable insight" into sector - Kilkenny TD

Fianna Fáil Carlow-Kilkenny TD and Finance Committee chairperson John McGuinness has welcomed the publication of the Report on Banking 2022 by the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and Taoiseach.    

Restrictions on bankers' pay and bonuses, the introduction of new laws forcing retail banks to provide cash services and an analysis by the Central Bank on the withdrawal of KBC and Ulster Bank from the market are among 20 recommendations contained in the report published last Wednesday.   

It follows extensive work during the committee's hearings on a range of issues last year.   

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Deputy McGuinness said: “The publication of this report represents a valuable insight into the state of the banking sector in Ireland today.    

“There are a number of important recommendations including calls for an end to bankers’ bonuses, more transparency in banking and for the committee to engage more with the banks in the coming 12 months.”    

Deputy McGuinness added the banking system has a “significant impact” on Irish businesses, households and the economy at large and so it is important it meets the needs of the public.   

“Traditional banking services such as ATMs and physical branches remain vital to significant cohorts of society, including rural and urban communities, and the removal of such services would be detrimental to the economic and societal wellbeing of such communities,” he said.   

The report advised that the current restrictions on banking remuneration remain in place including the €500,000 cap on an employee’s annual pay.   

It also called for laws to be introduced to force retail banks to provide cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for customers “within specified geographic baselines”.  

The report stated responsibility could be delegated to the Central Bank “to review the coverage of current cash access and submit proposals regarding appropriate geographic baselines, with scope for periodic review in line with changing circumstances".