Full transparency & schedule of compensation needed from Banks

Labour Finance spokesperson Joan Burton TD has said that there must now be full transparency from those banks implicated in the tracker mortgage scandal and an urgency brought to efforts to compensate those affected.

Deputy Burton also said that if the Central Bank believes a crime has been committed then there must be a comprehensive criminal investigation.

Deputy Burton said:

“The behaviour of Irish banks shows that no significant cultural change has happened over the last decade and despite major reforms, Irish banks still do not fear the law or the regulator, and remain contemptuous of customer rights. 

“While the Minister for Finance is speaking to the banks this week it is simply not good enough that the tracker mortgage scandal is still unresolved, and the belief that these type of chats will resolve the issue is misplaced.

“We now need to see full transparency from the banks concerned about the number of customers affected in each, and clear explanations about what happened in those cases and critically, who was responsible.

“We also need to see from each institution a schedule as to when customers will be compensated and the specific individual issues resolved. This should be completed by Christmas at the latest.

“It is clear that this behaviour has been endemic across a number of banks, but we have yet to be told why it happened. To the outside observer the pattern of the scandal would indicate an organised conspiracy to remove contractual obligations from customers.

“In effect many people were forced to pay more than they should have and at least 23 have lost their homes. This is tantamount to an organised cartel among most if not all of the banks.

“Competition authorities in Ireland and Europe need to address this robustly and gather the necessary information.

“We are told the Central Bank is meeting the Gardaí, and if this is so it can only be because someone suspects that a crime – or more than one crime – has been committed.

“If so, then the first duty of the Central Bank, like any other good citizen, is to do all that it can and should to assist the Gardaí in carrying out a comprehensive criminal investigation, so that any and every wrongdoer is brought to justice.”