Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In two years we have had 20 transfers. The Minister of State has said this is a difficult decision for families. It is not. These are families who are about to be chucked out on the street and the decision is whether they want to be chucked out on the street or stay in their house. It is a not a difficult decision for a family to make.

The ones who are slowing down the process are the banks. I know the Government is keen on it, including the Ministers, Deputies Alan Shatter and Phil Hogan, as well as the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan. I appeal to the Ministers to recognise that the reason the number is 20 is the Government is being gamed by the banks. However, they are the ones which are slowing down this process and speaking out of both sides of their mouths. The Ministers should have a think about this. They should think about what they can do to progress this number, not from 20 to 100, but to make this a viable solution. My second appeal is that the Government relax the conditions, some of which, when combined, are nuts. What we want is for housing officers to be able to make the right economic decisions and relax some of the conditions. There are many who would benefit from this process, meaning the State would benefit, but they do not meet the criteria. They might have higher incomes, but because of the house involved, the size of the mortgage and all of the other criteria used, they do not qualify. The process has huge potential.

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