Minister’s Brief

Detail:
Central Bank Policy Section
Role of Central Bank Policy section
The section is primarily responsible for the Central Bank powers and functions as set out in
the Central Bank Acts. In practice this means preparing Ministerial submissions on consents,
approvals and consultative functions as set out under the Central Bank Acts. It should be
noted that the Ministerial powers are relatively limited given the independence of the Central
Bank under national legislation and more importantly, under EU Treaties, an independence
the Central Bank frequently cites. Nevertheless, the Minister and Department can exercise
some degree of soft power in relation to the Central Bank, particularly in relation to decisions
on upcoming policy areas as set out below.
Potential Amendment of Section 33AK (Disclosure of Information) of Central Bank Act 1942
Consideration has already been underway on potential amendments to Section 33AK of the
Central Bank Act 1942, as amended. Section 33AK deals with the circumstances under which
the Central Bank can disclose confidential information to third parties.
This sharing of information may become particularly pertinent given the Banking Inquiry
findings that there should be greater oversight of the Central Bank. To meet this finding, the
Central Bank may be required to share greater levels of information with other bodies,
including the Department. Also, there is a specific section 33AK recommendation in the
Banking Inquiry report (Chapter 1 (Banks) Recommendation 2):
“A full review should take place of section 33AK of the Central Bank Act 1942, to ensure that
only documents deemed ‘secret’ which are independently reviews by a High Court judge are
withheld from any future Oireachtas inquiry.”
This issue will require further consideration by Government.
Industry funding of the costs of financial regulation
Currently the Central Bank raises approximately 50% of the funds necessary for its financial
regulation activities through levies on financial services firms, with the remainder coming
from the Central Bank’s profits (which would otherwise go to the Exchequer). 4 The Central
Bank’s stated aim is to move towards 100% industry funding of financial regulation, in line
with many other jurisdictions and regulatory bodies.
In mid-2015, a public consultation was undertaken jointly by this Department and the Central
Bank. Respondents from the financial services industry, on whom this would involve increased
4
There are certain exceptions to this 50% rule: institutions covered by the Eligible Liabilities Guarantee (ELG)
Scheme contribute 100% of the costs of their supervision, while credit unions’ contributions are capped at 0.01%
of their total assets.
Page 79 of 184