Bank of Ireland has been accused of snubbing the Finance Minister after it failed to reduce its standard variable mortgage rate.

Yesterday the bank said it is shaving 0.3% off all of its fixed rate offers.

But it has made no announcement on its variable rate, which stands at 4.5%.

Michael Noonan recently called in the banks to demand they reduce variable rates in line with falling ECB trends.

Aine McCleary, head of mortgages of Bank of Ireland, said: "This is the second mortgage rate cut from Bank of Ireland this year. In January we communicated with our variable rate customers advising them of our new rate offers, and we will be doing so again".

Following the announcement, Fianna Fáil Finance Spokesperson Michael McGrath has claimed the Minister had been duped by the bank. He says the government has let down the country's estimated 300,000 variable rate mortgage holders.

"Bank of Ireland now appears to have snubbed the Minister and is sticking with an indefensible and unjustifiable variable rate of 4.5%," according to Deputy McGrath. "If their response is indicative of the response yet to come from the other banks, standard variable rate customers have once again been very badly let down by this government."