Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Regulation of Debt Management Advisors Bill 2011. I commend Deputy Michael McGrath on introducing it as it provides us with an opportunity to discuss the difficulties many are experiencing with debt management. We are all well aware of the financial difficulties people are encountering. This problem is not unique to any county or area as people are struggling throughout the country. The nature of the collapse, in Ireland in particular, has meant many have been left with unsustainable debt. Prime examples include young couples who bought their homes at the height of the boom and who may have lost their jobs subsequently. They now face the prospect of having to make mortgage repayments they cannot afford on a house in negative equity. These are the people who are in extreme difficulty and who genuinely need help. I welcome that, since taking office, the Government has sought to address the matter. The introduction of the personal insolvency Bill will provide some light at the end of the tunnel in this regard.

Not wanting to talk about one's financial struggles is an inherently Irish trait. Rather than addressing the problem, we ignore it. As the saying goes, one can hide poverty but one cannot hide wealth. People are embarrassed about having to ask for advice on their finances. In some instances, they do not even know who to ask for help. It is when people are most desperate and vulnerable that unprincipled debt management agencies are able to attract them. People need to be made fully aware that they have other options.

MABS has a long-standing and excellent record of assisting people in difficult financial circumstances. It is important this organisation's experience and skills be used to good effect when progressing the matter of debt management. We must build on the strength of MABS and further expand its excellent service. When I was a credit union manager, I worked closely with MABS and gained first-hand experience of its great work and the respect it enjoys from both clients and creditors. MABS takes an holistic approach to debt management and considers all the issues that need to be addressed.

I ask the Minister to consider appointing a team of debt management advisers to enhance further the skill set and capacity of MABS. These advisers could work under and within the MABS structure and sign up to the operating principles, culture and not-for-profit ethos of the organisation. As part of the MABS structure, they would comprise an independent and impartial resource for people in financial difficulty to call upon. Their role would be to negotiate with the banks on behalf of people in financial difficulty. These advisers would have an accredited qualification to enable them to deal with the more complex and difficult financial circumstances in which many people find themselves. These advisers could be appointed by the Department of Social Protection and funded by the banks. The reason I am recommending they be funded by the banks is that, as we all know, early intervention can often prevent much more serious and costly steps, such as legal action. It would be in the banks' interest to have a mutually agreed solution that is workable and achievable to avoid unnecessary legal action.

There are other private providers of debt management services and it is important they be properly regulated in the interest of those who use them. In this regard, I welcome the objective of this Bill, which is to ensure the effective regulation of the debt management sector. I fully support this and welcome that the Government has included a provision in regard to the regulation of debt management as part of its Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Bill 2011. I commend the Minister on his work to date on this matter and urge him to continue to monitor the problem. People are in distress over their personal finances and we must not allow them to feel isolated or abandoned.

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