Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

The Minister has indicated she does not intend to accept the amendment. If that remains her position, will she consider going to the Minister for Finance and asking him whether, as part of the scheme we have for relevant banks in this State, he would require them not to foreclose on householders who are making a genuine effort to pay? Further, would he ask them to negotiate with mortgage holders who find themselves in some difficulty? The banks should not demand an interest-only repayment because that leaves the bulk of the capital sum still at large, but rather a mortgage-only repayment. The interest would be effectively suspended for a period of perhaps two years, or for whatever period remains of the scheme for the banks. Does the Minister consider such fundamental public policy relevant enough that she would bring such a case to the Minister for Finance and ask him to apply it to the banks? There is no doubt that the Minister for Finance has the power to do this.

Nobody is defending people who are reckless with their mortgages and I accept there will always be such people. I gave the example earlier of a 50 year old man, who should have known better, taking out a very substantial mortgage for a 20-year period. That is not to say we wish to see such people losing their homes. We certainly do not. A strong case can be made that we are in very difficult circumstances and we should not make matters worse. I believe the Minister would accept that. The public need leadership and thinking outside the box. I hope that in these exceptional circumstances the Minister might consider going to the Minister for Finance with such a proposal.

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