Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)

We have two versions of what is happening. One version is that the Minister is extending the membership of a think-tank and the second version is the one that has come from the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Eamon Ryan, that the Government is preparing a new scheme to bail out mortgage holders and that Cabinet will approve an implementation committee for this new scheme. Which of those two versions of events is the correct one? While this deliberation is going on, will the Minister extend the moratorium of one year for 6,400 mortgage holders who are now one year in arrears and are at serious risk? Is the Minister on board for the idea, which underlined Fine Gael's proposal, of the banks writing down some of the value of the loans? This has implications for recapitalisation and for the banks' capital. This is the essence of any of these schemes. Does the Minister accept that principle?

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