Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following:“acknowledges that the Government inherited a severe mortgage arrears crisis from the previous Government; accepts that the mortgage problem is a significant economic and social challenge for the State and that the Government is aware of the difficulties some homeowners are facing in meeting their mortgage commitments; notes that the Government published the Report of the Inter-Departmental Mortgage Arrears Working Group in October 2011 and that the key recommendations of that Report have been adopted by Government as the most appropriate framework to address this major problem; recognises that the Central Bank of Ireland’s interaction with mortgage lenders is key to addressing mortgage arrears and in particular to ensure that, where appropriate, lenders put more long-term and sustainable solutions in place for their customers in mortgage difficulty;notes that:— the Central Bank of Ireland has set performance targets for the six main lenders requiring them to ‘propose’ sustainable solutions to 85 per cent of their mortgages in arrears of greater than 90 days by the end of the year and to ‘conclude’ solutions with 45 per cent; — the Central Bank of Ireland’s Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears sets out requirements for mortgage lenders when dealing with borrowers facing or in mortgage arrears; — the Central Bank of Ireland published a revised Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears effective from 1st July, 2013 following approval by the Central Bank Commission and consultation with the Minister for Finance; — the Central Bank of Ireland will commence a review of Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears compliance later this year; and — the latest Central Bank of Ireland mortgage statistics show that the number of mortgage accounts for principal dwelling houses in arrears fell for the fourth consecutive quarter at the end of June 2014;welcomes the Minister for Justice and Equality’s decision to waive all fees previously payable to either the Insolvency Service of Ireland or the Courts by a debtor who applies for any of the debt solutions available under the Personal Insolvency Act 2012; notes:— that a comprehensive mortgage advisory service and mortgage-to-rent scheme have been put in place; and — the recent reductions in mortgage interest rates by certain financial institutions which will have a positive impact on the affordability for their customers;accepts that the vast majority of mortgage holders are meeting their repayment commitments; further notes that:— the Government is committed to bringing forward legislation that protects consumers whose mortgages are sold to unregulated entities and that the Department of Finance has recently published the submissions it received in response to a public consultation process seeking views on this legislation; and — it is anticipated that this legislation will be published by the end of this year; and calls on the Government to continue and intensify its work across the relevant Departments and Agencies to deal with the mortgage arrears problem.”- (Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Simon Harris).

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