Mr. John McCarthy:

It is a matter on which we keep a close eye. We know a great deal about the private mortgage market and the extent of arrears arising there.

Local authorities also have an historic loan book relating to house purchases. The collection level for loans in 2013 was 69%. As things stand, in terms of the latest data available, there has been some element of improvement over the last 12 months but there are still approximately 5,800 local authority mortgages in arrears of more than 90 days. That represents approximately 31% of the total number of local authority loans, which is significantly higher than the corresponding figure in the private mortgage market, which stands at around 10% or 11%. We are now engaged in a process, working through the local authorities, which is the equivalent of a mortgage arrears resolution process. The local government system is going through those 5,725 mortgages that are in arrears of more than 90 days. Each local authority is sitting down with each of those loan holders to try to work out the best solution.