gained pace, the number of legal proceedings against mortgage holders have also been increasing. the central bank ’ s continued role in this area is to ensure that the banks adhere to the code of conduct of mortgage arrears, meet the criteria for sustainable solutions and continue to engage with their customers to find non - repossession solutions whenever possible. the consumer protection ( regulation of credit servicing firms ) act 2015 seeks to ensure that borrowers whose loans are sold to unregulated transferees maintain the regulatory protections they had prior to the sale. bis central bankers ’ speeches it is imperative that lenders continue to work with over - indebted consumers to try to resolve any arrears situation and to achieve sustainable solutions with co - operating borrowers. clearly for many, there is no quick remedy or solution to long term arrears and careful, empathetic but realistic approaches need to be taken. i welcome the new coordinated programme of assistance for those in long - term arrears, with mabs acting as a “ one stop shop ” for borrowers in need of advice and support. for credit unions, the central bank ’ s new regulations came into effect on 1 january this year. these will enhance soundness and provide for enhanced confidence in the sector, supporting its role in providing important financial services to the community. we will continue to work with credit unions to support appropriate restructuring measures, the embedding of the strengthened regulatory framework, and to facilitate prudent and appropriate development. this is also a landmark year for the insurance sector, with the solvency ii framework going live. the “ whole balance sheet ” approach to capital calculation combined with the strong emphasis on a firm ’ s risk management and supervisory review will result in a muchtransformed regulatory and supervisory framework. this year, central bank supervisors and the supervised firms will be putting this framework into operation for the first time. in december, we released new regulations on sme lending. the regulations aim to strengthen protections for smes, while also facilitating access to credit. the regulations provide for greater transparency around the application process and the reasons for refusing credit applications, greater protections for guarantors and an expansion of the grounds for an internal appeal. there is growing international recognition that financial regulators should be more pro - active in protecting consumers, in view of the complexity, risks and costs of financial products. it is not our role to run the firms we regulate nor is it to determine their business models or strategies ( including in

that the two boom - and - bust cycles that have bookmarked the middle part of john fitzgerald ’ s career as ireland ’ s pre - eminent macroeconomic modeller display, as we have seen, striking differences between them both as regards their causes and the dynamic evolution of macroeconomic variables. but after every crisis, home - spun truths reassert themselves. living within one ’ s means, exercising prudence, not running before you can walk. in the end, lady bracknell would have been justified in censuring irish policymakers as she censured her prospective son - in - law ernest. curing the current crisis has been in some respects more challenging than the last time, given the absence of some previously available tools and because of the greater complexity of resolving the indebtedness problems that have been much more to the fore this time around. policy has been tackling the challenges and they are now evidently beginning to be brought under control and subdued. lessons were learnt from the earlier crisis, as exemplified by the more speedy fiscal policy response. the extent to which private debt issues were much more important this time was also recognised and resulted in sweeping legislative changes on insolvency and progressively more assertive regulatory intervention to ensure more proactive and effective management of the problem by lenders. thus the public authorities have been acting on the basis of lessons learnt from experience. the distinguished commentator rudiger dornbusch was one of the few to suggest that a default could be needed, but already by the time he was writing ( 1988 ) the corner had been turned and growth was beginning to take care of debt sustainability concerns. bis central bankers ’ speeches we are still learning. in particular, for example, the case - by - case resolution of situations of chronic over - indebtedness has proved difficult. and a full analysis of the distributional consequences remains elusive 3 as does a convincing assessment of the longer term consequences. but what is undoubtedly true is that our national ability to achieve improved policy responses now – and in the future – has been greatly enhanced by an improved understanding of the macro - economy to which john fitzgerald ’ s tireless and immensely well - informed research has greatly contributed. the evidence ( some of which i have reviewed elsewhere ) is that the impact of boom and bust on the distribution of income seems to have differed less as between the two episodes, after account is taken of the redistributive effect of fiscal policy. bis central bankers ’ speeches