Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Minister of State for her contribution and acknowledge the fact that the Government is accepting this very constructive Bill which was brought forward by Deputy Michael McGrath whom I commend for the Trojan work he has done in analysing the problems and developing constructive responses to the serious financial difficulties being experienced by many families.

In addressing this matter, Fianna Fáil's objective is to try to ensure family homes will be protected from repossession and that families will be in a position to remain in residences in which they have invested so much time, energy and money. To this end, we have already brought forward the Family Home Bill, to be introduced in the Seanad, which seeks to regulate the activities of debt management service providers. We also want to see full implementation of the recommendations brought forward last November by the expert group. These include the roll-out of the deferred interest scheme; reform of the mortgage interest supplement scheme; the introduction of a non-judicial debt settlement system; and the modernisation of the bankruptcy laws.

On 12 July Fianna Fáil launched a strategy on mortgages and personal debt. This came about on foot of the efforts of my party's working group on mortgages and personal debt which was ably led by Deputy Michael McGrath and Senators MacSharry and Thomas Byrne. These three men are members of the generation most affected by the problems under discussion and they are trying to address the current situation in a real way. They were capably assisted in their work by Deputy Ó Cuív. The package of measures brought forward by my party's working group includes the aforementioned Family Home Bill and the Regulation of Debt Management and Advisors Bill. We do not have to explain why this was necessary and we can just consider some facts relating to mortgages to make clear the scale of the problem facing us.

On 29 August the Central Bank published the latest data on mortgage arrears and repossession for the period ending June 2011. Those figures indicated that 7.2% of private residential mortgage accounts are in arrears for more than 90 days; that is from more than 777,000 private residential mortgages to a value of €115 billion. The recent ECB interest rate increases, coupled with the hikes in variable rates charged by banks, have put immense pressure on families who are trying to keep up with mortgage repayments and keep a family under a roof. Deputy McGrath's Bill is essential legislation that can be used to address the concerns of many people who may have lost their jobs and do not see themselves in a position to maintain mortgage repayments. The Bill is based on the Law Reform Commission's report on personal debt management and debt enforcement. I commend the commission for the effort put into the initial research.

Unfortunately, many people are in a position where they will have to resort to a mechanism like that outlined in the Bill. The Oireachtas and the new Government has been far too slow in responding to the problem and putting in place the type of structure needed to address the problem. The new Government is now nine months in office and was voted in because the public wanted to see some action and new ideas. Unfortunately, we have not seen it yet, although it is positive that the Government accepts this Bill. We must see immediate action.

If the Bill is accepted it will ensure that an independent body separate from the banks and courts will be put in place that can intervene and assess each case individually, ensuring that a system or structure can be put in place to allow people to stay in their homes. We face an evolving process and a first step must be ensuring that those who are unable to pay can avail of some structured process. I endorse this Bill and hope it will be considered promptly on Committee Stage, where all parties can agree on a structure to be put in place.

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