Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I hope I have got the right interpretation of the amendment. The Deputy can correct me if I do not. Section 6 amends the definition of an "eligible consumer" in section 57BA of the Central Bank Act 1942 to include a person whose loan is being serviced by a regulated credit servicing firm. This part of the 1942 Act deals with the Financial Services Ombudsman. The Deputy's amendment appears to seek to give access to the Financial Services Ombudsman to customers of credit-servicing firms and customers of unregulated buyers of credit agreements. However, the borrower of a loan being serviced by a regulated credit servicing firm is already able to make a complaint to the Financial Services Ombudsman about the activity of the regulated firm. If an entity buys a loan book and services the book itself, it is involved in the servicing of credit and will need to be regulated, and will therefore have access to the Financial Services Ombudsman through that route. Therefore, I believe the amendment is superfluous. It is not that I am disagreeing with the Deputy. The amendment is not needed to ensure access to the Financial Services Ombudsman.