Banks have been told they must cut variable mortgage interest rates or legislation will be brought in to force their hand.
Central Bank chief Patrick Honohan says banks need to recognise that charging exploitative rates will be counterproductive if it forces government policy reactions.
He made the comments in a report compiled for the Finance Minister.
Michael Noonan is holding a series of meetings with the heads of the country's six banks this week, where he is expected to pressure them into cutting their variable interest rates.
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Eircom has rejected a €3.3bn buyout approach, on the grounds that it didn't reflect its true value. The company confirmed last night that it had received a non-binding approach that valued the business at between €3.2bn and €3.3bn.
A statement from Eircom says: "While the bidder was very credible, the board believed that, with the business reaching an inflection point, the indicated price range undervalued the group. The matter is therefore not being progressed."
It has also emerged that the US investment firm, Anchorage Capital, has purchased an additional 25 percent stake in the telecommunications company to become its largest shareholders with a more than 30 percent stake.
Neither Eircom nor Anchorage would comment as to whether Anchorage had made the outright bid for the company. Anchorage has a history of bidding for underperforming assets.
On Monday of this week Eircom announced revenues of €311m for the third quarter of the year, a 1 percent fall compared to the January to March period last year. Revenues at the company continue to fall but at a slowing rate as the former plc switches more of its focus to broadband and mobile from fixed line services.
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It is reported that Irish food company Greencore, which had sales of €1.6bn last years pays an effective tax rate in Ireland of just 1 percent.
Irish Times reports that it uses "deferred tax assets" which were acquired through the takeover of UK competitor Uniq to reduce its tax liability in Ireland.
Due to tax credits and allowances that relate to historic losses at Uniq, Greencore faced an Irish corporate tax bill of £5.5m last year and a tax credit of £4.2m.
Speaking to the paper, Greencore chief executive Patrick Coveney said: "When we bought the Uniq business in the UK four years ago, there were a load of unused tax losses and capital allowances and we’re simply working our way through those."
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Taoiseach Enda Kenny and former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern are to be called to give evidence at the Oireachtas Banking Inquiry. They're on the Inquiry's final list of witnesses, to be heard in July.
Former International Monetary Fund executive Ajai Chopra has confirmed his appearance.
Today meanwhile, the role of external auditors to the banks will be under scrutiny.
Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will be questioned on economic policy during his tenure, while Enda Kenny will be consulted about his financial policies as an opposition leader.
Richard Bruton and Joan Burton will also be called to appear before the Inquiry, as former finance spokespersons for Fine Gael and Labour, as well as ex-Labour leader Pat Rabbitte, former Tánaiste Mary Harney, and former Green Party minister Eamon Ryan.
