Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The mortgage interest supplement review group because this was a specific scheme. I have also asked the group to examine another matter. The moratorium now in place was last week extended to 12 months instead of six months. This means that a person engaging with his or her bank will be protected from any legal action being taken against them for 12 months from the date of arrears arising. I have asked the group to look at the question of whether mortgage interest supplement should be paid in that first 12 months or whether it would be better to hold the mortgage interest supplement for a subsequent 12 months. It is a case of ensuring that people receive the full benefit from the moratorium, from what the Financial Regulator and the banks are doing and also from social welfare assistance.

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