Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman. I welcome the opportunity to appear before the committee with regard to this legislation. There was wide cross-party support for the need for this legislation during the Second Stage debate.

Essentially, the Bill aims to bring under the authorisation of the Central Bank financial products of which most people are very well aware and familiar with. One such product, the personal contract plan, which many people have, is widely used in the motor trade area for financing car purchases.

The second concerns where people perhaps buy household appliances, be they refrigerators, sofas or televisions, in shops that have buy now, pay later schemes with which most people are also familiar. Until now, however, they have not been authorised by the Central Bank. In the interests of consumer protection, we want those types of products and their providers to be authorised by the Central Bank. That is the essence of what we are doing today. There are some amendments to be put through following on from our Second Stage debate.