Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I accept the point the Deputy makes regarding awareness, but I am sure I am right in saying that in their negotiations with people in difficulties, lending institutions make them aware of all of the options available to them to remain in the family home. MABS does Trojan work to inform and assist people in debt difficulty. MABS informs people in difficulty of the options available to them. The scheme is one of the last resorts to which people are referred after every other resolution process has been examined.

The Deputy may ask the pertinent question of why numbers are so low but many applications are ineligible for a number of reasons. These include the borrower not meeting the criteria of the scheme, the borrower declining the scheme, the lender withdrawing an offer under the scheme or the local authority not having a sufficient social housing need for priority. A number of eligibility criteria must be met. It is not simple but it is a last resort and it is an effort by the Government to assist people who are in genuine difficulty. The commitment remains for the sake of those people.

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