Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is a very interesting concept. Will Mr. McConville give me an example? It is my understanding that if a flexi-loan arrangement was worked out, I could go to my local credit union and say I was pre-approved for a loan up to say €10,000 based on my income and so on. Would that be for a year or for two years? If it was for a year and my car broke down, I could use €5,000 for the car and I would still have €5,000 left if I wanted to go on holidays. How does one then put in the safeguards?

The bank used to telephone me and, I am sure, many other people to say we had been pre-approved for an increase in our overdrafts and in the limit on our credit cards, which kept going up, and everybody was spending like crazy. Then overnight the bank said that our overdrafts were gone. People who were pre-approved for overdrafts lost their jobs and fell into arrears and so on. How does one put safeguards in place in regard to somebody who presents today and is pre-approved for €10,000 but in six months time, loses his or her job and is in a terrible situation?