Members of the Central Bank Commission have criticised the regulator's communications strategy around the tracker mortgage issue.
Minutes from the regulator's Commission meeting at the end of November, show members considered the "strategy was flawed" and queried "whether in retrospect a different strategy might have been deployed based on what subsequently emerged".
At the meeting Central Bank Governor Philip Lane admitted the "wave of publicity" surrounding the tracker mortgage issue "had reflected negatively on the reputation" of the regulator, but said the Bank is working hard "to ensure the matter was pursued and that impacted customers received redress and compensation".
Members said there should be a focus on "local as well as national media and on clarity of messaging".
Head of Communications for the Central Bank Jill Forde said a regional communications programme was under way and "that it was continuing to develop".
She also noted the Bank’s "evolving social media presence".
During the meeting, the regulator's Director General for Financial Conduct, Derville Rowland, agreed that "all of the points around communications were valid and that there was a stronger focus now being put on that".
She added the communications function was "being brought into the centre of the Tracker Mortgage Examination programme".
The Central Bank will appear again before the Oireachtas Finance Committee later this month to give an update on its tracker mortgage examination.
