Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Almost every day my office is contacted by families who are at their wits' end and fearful of losing their homes. Some are hardworking families who, due to unemployment or illness, have fallen behind in their mortgage repayments. Others are private tenants who are meeting their monthly payments but whose homes are subject to repossession proceedings. These families are willing to engage, to make alternative arrangements and to do whatever it takes to keep their family homes. Unfortunately, the Government is failing these families. When the Government passed the Personal Insolvency Act in 2012, we warned the Government that giving the banks a veto was a big mistake. We were right. When the Government passed the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act in 2013, we told the Government that this would lead to an explosion of repossession cases. We were right on this too. The number of family homes and buy-to-let homes in long-term mortgage arrears is rising. There are now more than 100,000 homes at imminent risk of repossession. That is 100,000 individuals and families under threat of homelessness. In light of this evidence, does the Tánaiste now accept that the Government's response to the mortgage crisis has failed? Will the Tánaiste tell these struggling and stressed-out families what the Government proposes to do to help them keep their family homes and the roof over their heads?

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