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Roundup-Borrowers paying Cr. Unions 1st

Monday, October 22 08:23:14

Borrowers who have debt judgments registered against them are at least three times more likely to try to repay those debts if they are owed to a credit unions rather than to the mainstream banks, according to figures from the company behind the debt defaulter magazine Stubbs Gazette. The company said that 45 per cent of bad debtors who have had judgments registered against them this year over debts owing to credit unions have tried to make at least a part-repayment of the debt. This compares with 15.4 per cent of defaulters owing money to Bank of Ireland trying to make repayments, 6 per cent to AIB, 2.7 per cent to Bank of Scotland and none to Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, the new name for Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide.

"One of the main reasons for this is that banks are perceived as being effectively closed for future credit while individuals who may need to call on credit unions in the future are keen to regularise their position," said James Treacy, managing director of Stubbs Gazette Credit Bureau. The percentage of debtors with credit union judgments registered against them who attempted to repay their loans rose this year from 40 per cent in 2011, the figures show. Mr Treacy said the company had found, through focus group discussions with debtors, that high interest rates charged on unsecured debt such as credit cards meant that repayment of this debt took priority. Credit unions were also an important source of money for borrowers who struggled to source finance elsewhere, he added. The Irish Times

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THE International Monetary Fund has said the Government should continue the present austerity drive -- despite some politicians saying that a previous report by IMF researchers proved that austerity is not working. The Washington-based think tank said the pace of austerity "is appropriate and that a number of other factors have also proven to be a drag on growth". Research published by the IMF's chief economist Olivier Blanchard with Daniel Leigh earlier this month seemed to suggest that it had miscalculated the effect of austerity on the economy and led some economists to suggest that austerity would not work in Ireland.

The new comments, which were placed on the IMF's website over the weekend, were signed by Ajai Chopra, the IMF official who has overseen the fund's bailout of Ireland and the IMF's deputy director for Europe. It blames "overburdened bank, household and SME balance sheets" and "weak growth in trading partners" for the economy's failure to grow as quickly as originally forecast. "The pace of consolidation under the programme has struck an appropriate balance and continues to do so for the period ahead, enabling Ireland to make steady progress," Mr Chopra said in the statement. The Irish Independent

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THE economy will grow more slowly than forecast this year and next year, business lobby group IBEC said in a report released yesterday ahead of two major reports on the economy later this week. IBEC's gloomier forecasts come as the EU is set to announce new forecasts for growth in Ireland and the other 26 member states later today. The Government also plans to issue a medium-term economic plan on Thursday which is expected to cut growth forecasts.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan will be faced with a difficult political and economic choice in his Budget in seven weeks' time if official forecasts suggest the economy is not expanding as quickly as hoped. Slowing growth could force Mr Noonan to unveil extra taxes or further cuts in the Budget, which is already expected to be among the harshest seen in recent years. IBEC said yesterday that it now expects gross domestic produce to expand 0.8pc this year (down from 1pc) and expand 1.8pc in 2013 (down from 2.3pc). "Strong growth remains elusive," economist Fergal O'Brien said in IBEC's quarterly report on the economy. Gross national product is seen shrinking 2.5pc this year and a further 0.3pc next year. The Irish Independent

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CONOR Haughey, the eldest son of former Taoiseach Charles Haughey, is seeking investment of E3m in his wave energy company. Haughey developed the technology for his company, Blue Power Energy, inspired by his father's efforts to make his private island, Inisvickillane in the Blaskets, self-sufficient. Blue Power, which Haughey founded four years ago, has developed a new way of capturing energy from waves that has been tested by the Hydraulic Marine Research Centre at University College Cork (UCC).

Haughey, along with his chief financial officer Damien Browne and two private investors, have funded development prior to his decision to seek outside investors. "We thought, how can we harness the power of the ocean on our doorstep?" Haughey said. "We have the best waves in the whole world. The west coast of Ireland is a huge untapped resource." Browne said: "There are 500 million people in Europe who are looking for renewable power and, unlike in the Middle East, we have security of supply." The Irish Independent