Irish Examiner view: Mortgages and housing should be about public good not private profit

We are back to having the most expensive new mortgage rates in the eurozone - Ireland needs a public development bank

 

Anyone in Ireland hoping to buy a house will hardly be surprised to learn that we are back to having the most expensive new mortgage rates in the eurozone. The latest Central Bank figures reveal that rates in January were more than double the average for the rest of the currency group.

Two questions arise: The first is why this is the case, and the second is, what can be done about it?