Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)

The Central Bank report this morning made it clear that there is now more income tax being paid than last January. This is unfolding hand-in-hand with increases in our utility bills and VHI costs have gone up today etc. People have less income to be able to pay towards their mortgages. Several points were made about family homes including the fact that one in 12 mortgages is in arrears now, an increase from one in 30 mortgages two years ago. This shows the acceleration of mortgage debt and how it has become a more difficult aspect of people's lives. It is not because people will not pay but because they cannot pay. People seek debt resolution not hand-outs. No one is looking for a hand-out.

The banks have been recapitalised for this purpose and judges are aware of it. Under this Bill they would be able to use discretion in future with regard to mortgage arrears resolution. AIB has only paid out €600,000 in mortgage resolution cases in the recent past. We know of cases before the courts in which banks are willing to make deals with homeowners in respect of their family homes. People must address this question.

We must go further in matters relating to court repossession orders. Lenders should not be able to apply to the court for a repossession order where the creditor is engaged with the lender through a State insolvency service. In the case of a family home where a personal insolvency trustee has engaged with a lender or creditors there should be due regard to the lender's ability to pay beyond reasonable living expenses in any personal insolvency agreement. Such arrangements should be binding on lenders without recourse to the courts. The insolvency Bill introduced by the Minister, Deputy Shatter, allows for this.

Any Bill should allow for a person in negative equity in respect of a mortgage on the family home to apply to a State agency established for such a purpose and for the person to re-evaluate said property at the current market value. These issues must be addressed. We must bring down negative equity around people's necks to a level which they can afford to repay. Mortgages should be reduced to 120% of any re-evaluation and people should be allowed to engage in a proper way with their banks and lenders. Provision for these aspects of the Bill should be introduced in future. I fully endorse the Bill introduced by Deputy Donnelly dealing with this aspect of judges' discretion and it should be taken seriously by the Government.

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