Ms Mairead McGuinness:

I do not think there is much that divides us Deputy. As I said in my remarks, I am as concerned as he is about those who find themselves in hard times. This time the crisis has not arisen due to past mistakes made by banks or people over borrowing. This time we have businesses and individuals, as he pointed out, who for no reason of their own find themselves in a very difficult place and I have a full understanding of that. In fact, in my conversations at the Commission, I speak to the specialist teams about the importance of protecting the individual and ensuring that if banks sell bundles of loans to another vehicle, the protection of the borrower is as strong in that move as it was with the original borrower. I think we have learned that lesson.

I used the word "unburden" in connection with balance sheets. We know that the current flow of credit from banks in this crisis have helped to keep the real economy afloat. What we do not want to see but must prepare for is a time when there might be a build up of non-performing loans. The Deputy referenced that in Ireland there has been a significant decrease in this, which is positive, but we need to prepare for what might happen.

The European Parliament is very concerned about citizens and individuals. This is a process that goes through the Parliament as well. I think we have learned that lesson. We need to understand the difficult challenge of maintaining a credit flow into the real economy if there is a build up of non-performing loans but we have the past to guide us. There are aspects of the past, which the Deputy referenced and which I understand, that I would not like to see happen again.

This morning I received an email from a constituent who has a very severe problem so, like the Deputy, I am in direct contact with the real world. I can assure him that everything we do here will be mindful of what happens in the real world and the emotional pain people experience when faced with a situation of not being able to repay loans. Parliaments must have wider discussions on how to move from this current phase towards a recovery. While at the moment there is a lot of money going out, member states' governments are supporting the real economy, the banks are there and the European Central Bank, ECB, is driving this policy, how and when that will change and how that will be managed. These are issues I am very mindful of as well because I, like the Deputy, have first-hand knowledge and experience of constituents who lived with and are still living with very difficult situations because of the last financial crisis.