Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)

On the Order of Business on 1 May, I asked the Taoiseach to outline what action the Government was taking to ensure that all financial institutions which provide mortgages for Priory Hall residents would be fully engaged in the proposed new Priory Hall resolution process under former Supreme Court judge, Mr. Justice Joseph Finnegan. The proposal for a new resolution process had been announced a few days earlier and was greatly welcomed by Priory Hall residents as the first potentially positive step in six months of appalling suffering for them and their families. Given the horrendous ordeal they have endured, Priory Hall residents unanimously agreed to enter the resolution process. When the resolution process was initially announced, it appeared that the banks and financial institutions were refusing to engage with residents, Dublin City Council and other stakeholders. Given that many of these banks have been bailed out to the tune of billions by Irish citizens, it was particularly galling to read comments, allegedly from the Irish Banking Federation, that these financial institutions would not participate in the process and would continue to engage with Priory Hall residents only on a case-by-case basis.

A number of days later, AIB agreed to take part in the resolution process. I understand that a significant number of Priory Hall owner-occupiers are AIB mortgage holders, so this was a welcome decision for the individuals and families concerned. I also understand that a significant number of residents have mortgages with Bank of Ireland. Residents were clearly extremely anxious that all banks and financial institutions would fully engage with the mediation process to ensure it had credibility and would be able to help resolve the unique mortgage problem for Priory Hall owner-occupiers. Some residents greatly fear that they may be forced into bankruptcy if the mortgage crisis for Priory Hall residents is not urgently resolved. They also fear that they may face mortgage, rent and storage costs even though this whole construction, legal and financial quagmire came about through no fault of theirs.

A few weeks ago it seemed outrageous that banks, including several owned by the Irish and British states, might refuse to get involved in a voluntarily resolution process and I called on the Taoiseach to undertake all possible action to ensure they got involved. The Taoiseach told me in Dáil Éireann that he had spoken to the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and that he had received confirmation from the banks that they would engage in the resolution process of Mr. Justice Finnegan. He went on to say that when he was in Baldoyle at the announcement of the $500 million investment by MyIan, he met a number of the people from Priory Hall. He concluded by saying: "My views on this matter are clear. I am pleased to note the banks have confirmed they will engage in the resolution process." I asked the Taoiseach to confirm that all of the banks and financial institutions would participate and he answered in the affirmative and said: "I understand 13 or 14 banks are involved."

I welcomed the Taoiseach's comments on the Order of Business last week that all the banks will now engage in the proposed resolution process under Mr. Justice Joseph Finnegan. However, residents had not been informed of this and were very anxious to get confirmation of the name of each bank or financial institution that has agreed to participate. Can the Minister of State confirm which banks have agreed to participate? Has the Department provided Priory Hall residents and their outstanding representatives, including Ms Sinead Power, Ms Ursula Graham, Mr. Graham Usher and Mr. Darren Kelly with a list of the 13 or 14 institutions concerned? What other stakeholders will be involved in the process? Will these include the developer, Thomas McFeely and Coalport? Will the Minister of State indicate precisely how many Priory Hall residents have been invited to partake in the mediation process?

I received correspondence from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, this morning and he said: "Out of respect for the process approved by the Supreme Court, I do not intend to make any comment at this point other than to ask all stakeholders to engage fully with it." I back the Minister's call for all stakeholders to be fully engaged in the process. However, residents are also clearly very anxious to get further details on the current status of the resolution process. Can the Minister of State confirm how long the process will take? I note that the Minister's correspondence referred to the "adjournment of the legal proceedings for a period of three months". Is there a three-month deadline and does the reference to three months mean we will have a conclusion in July? I would appreciate the Minister of State's comments on this.

See this speech in context