Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his reply. He states in his reply: "It would not be fair for 2.1 million taxpayers to subsidise 138,000 owner occupier mortgages, especially when the vast majority of these mortgage holders can afford to pay their mortgages." It is unfair that variable rate mortgage holders are asked to subsidise those on tracker mortgages. Those on tracker mortgages are protected by contract yet nobody in this House can speak up for those on variable interest rates. It is our responsibility to do that. Would the Minister commit to coming before the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform to offer us a three to five year plan to deal with those on variable interest rate mortgages because this situation will get worse? If we are serious about tackling the mortgage crisis we must have a three to five year plan because every time the ECB decides to decrease interest rates that has a positive effect on tracker mortgages but it is being subsidised by variable rate mortgages. That is not sustainable. In order to be proactive and constructive will the Minister come before the committee and offer us a plan to deal with those variable rate mortgage holders?

The insolvency legislation is very welcome. It is a first step in tackling this problem. It will be of great benefit to those in mortgage difficulties but we cannot deny that the variable rate mortgage issue is gathering momentum as a problem and it will continue to be a problem unless we have a three to five year plan in order to deal comprehensively with it.

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