Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for allowing me to raise this issue. We are all aware of reports this week that levels of mortgage arrears in the private sector have reached 10.5%. Given that local authority house purchasing support is generally the lender of last resort, it is inevitable that it will suffer from a higher rate of arrears. The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government needs to address this situation and provide guidelines to local authorities which are struggling to cope with the problem. The level of local authority house repossessions has greatly escalated in the past two years by comparison to previous years. Based on the latest figures available in County Offaly, for example, up to the last quarter of 2010, some 106 homes were in arrears under the various affordable housing schemes, including shared ownership and tenant purchase. The total value of those loans amounted to €1.7 million. Councils must be equipped to facilitate people who are struggling to repay these mortgages.

If local authorities repossess such houses they are still left with the problem of rehousing the individuals involved. There are up to 100,000 people on existing social housing waiting lists across the country. This will add further to the pressure placed on what are already very stretched resources. These individuals will also be placed on rent supplement, thus further pressurising the State coffers.

Possible solutions to alleviate the burden on local authority housing lists include interest-only repayments, deferred payments for a period or an extended loan repayment period. The Department is committed to issuing guidance to local authorities for dealing with houses in arrears before the summer recess but no movement has occurred so far - at least, no movement that we are aware of, or led to believe may be forthcoming. The updated guidance to local authorities is supposedly being drafted in consultation with the County and City Managers Association. We are led to believe that this will come before us prior to the summer recess. Can the Minister of State confirm that this is the case?

Will the Government develop a system that emphasises the rights of home owners? Can the Government honour its commitment to produce new guidelines? If so, when will that happen and what form will those guidelines take? Can people be afforded some solace that local authorities will have guidelines which will have the rights of home owners as their focus?

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