Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am disappointed with the Minister of State's response although I did not expect much more. If he is accusing us of being arsonists on this side of the House, his party was certainly the accomplice with the bellows in the sense that the policies it was advocating when it was in opposition were equally expansionist and inflationary. There is no point in trying to hide the fact that it campaigned in numerous elections to spend more and tax less. The Minister of State should not just dismiss a well-intended Bill that addresses a fundamental need, not only in the context of families facing repossession, difficulties and mortgage arrears but also in establishing a principle whereby banks would be brought to heel to an extent by Parliament, ensuring they address the fundamental need of home ownership which we all espouse in this House. We do not like to see families dragged from their homes and put on the side of the street. Every effort should be made to retain a family within its home. That is the purpose of this Bill. It is about tipping the scales away from the advantage the banks have over distressed families and towards giving people a break and another opportunity in life.

We are not talking about trophy homes here. We are talking about people in three-bed semi-detached houses in estates throughout the country who have a home they want to reside in. They do not see it as a capital investment but as a place where they live and rear their children. They should not be under constant pressure and stress from banks that have been saved by the State at a very high cost to the taxpayer and to the country in general. We talk about morality and moral hazard, and there is a moral obligation on us to ensure that the banks behave in a manner consistent with basic decency and fairness. That is not happening and, as the Minister of State can see, the number of repossession orders is increasing dramatically in courts throughout the country. That is going to move forward consistently in terms of the numbers because the banks now see a recovering property market and increased equity in the home. The mortgage holder is still distressed in the sense that he or she cannot service repayments but the gap is closing and the banks are now moving with haste on repossessions.

The Bill is well thought out. The most disturbing point in all of this is that it was forewarned in the sense that when the Government brought forward the personal insolvency legislation and established the personal insolvency practitioners, PIPs, it was pointed out that the banks retained the veto. When we talk about morality, it would be an oxymoron to put banks in the same sentence as that word. It simply is not credible for us to suggest the banks will behave in a moral way or take into account the needs of individuals in society. Their fundamental loyalty is to the balance sheet and their shareholders and that is whom the banks are out to please. The Government is fundamentally wrong and complicit in allowing the banks a free run on assessing what is a sustainable solution, what a family should pay, or whom they pursue through the courts. We have to tip that balance back in favour of homeowners for many reasons, but first and foremost because it is the right thing to do. These people bought homes full of expectation, belief and very often hope and now all of that is shattered through no fault of their own. This was brought about through irresponsible lending practices by the very same banks that the State has saved.

The Government should not take credit for a recovering property market. The two groups that have most interest in a recovering property market and an inflationary housing policy are the banks and the Government. The Government is complicit in trying to inflate the property market again to repair the balance sheets of the banks and let them off out the gap again.

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