Ennis Economist Says Banks Unfairly Criticised

A prominent Clare economist is arguing that banks have been unfairly criticised for not passing on increases in interest rates to savers. It comes as a new 2% interest rate has been applied to AIB's standard online, junior and student accounts as well as EBS's family savers accounts. However, the rate only applies to the first €1,000 up to 12 months, after which it will drop to 0.1%. Assistant Professor of Social Policy at UCD, Ennis native, Micheál Collins says while Irish banks have been slow at passing on increases in interest rates to savers, they've also been reluctant to pass on increases to borrowers.