Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, United Left) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to speak to this Private Members' motion. This has been an ongoing issue since the crisis hit and many of us on this side of the House believe the Government has not grasped the nettle in terms of the position in which people find themselves.

Data released from the Courts Service indicate that as of 1 January, 7,101 civil bills for repossession have been lodged by the banks across the State's 26 Circuit Courts. The largest volume, 1,420, is lodged in Dublin Circuit Court followed by 564 in Meath Circuit Court, 543 in Cork Circuit Court and 412 in Galway Circuit Court. The next highest number, 405, are active in County Kildare underlining increasing distress among mortgage holders in the commuter counties around Dublin. In Wicklow there are 255 active bills for possession lodged by banks. That is the seriousness of the situation people are facing. In all, 8,164 civil bills for repossession were lodged with the courts last year. The highest number lodged in any court in any one month was 382 in Dublin Circuit Court in March last year. The highest number lodged nationally was in June last year when banks lodged bills in respect of 1,632 homes. These figures are from the Circuit Court report.

The serious aspect of this is that the figures show that in every month last year applications to repossess primary family homes far exceeded those for buy to let properties. For example, in December, 694 bills to repossess family homes were lodged across the State compared to 21 for buy to let properties and 167 for other unknown dwellings. In November, 350 applications were in respect of primary family homes while 24 were for buy to let properties. We know the reason for that. With a buy to let property the banks can hold on and make money but in regard to family homes they can force the people out, sell the homes and make money on them with the increase in house prices. That is outrageous, and the banks should not be able to get away with it.

It was very disappointing to hear the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, say earlier that the Government is still considering measures to deal with the mortgage arrears crisis. It should have been dealt with a long time ago. I brought a Private Members' Bill before the House recently on a code of conduct for the banks. It was to make it mandatory that the banks would implement a code of conduct but it was not accepted by the Government. We have been waiting some time for the announcement of measures promised in early spring.

Meanwhile, hundreds of repossession applications are being heard and approved in the courts on a weekly basis. The Minister for Finance has stated that the banks are bringing homeowners to court for repossession only to make them engage. That is an insulting remark to make to people who face the repossession of their homes. If the Minister believes that, he is living in a different universe to the rest of us.

I will give the House one example of how people are being treated by lenders and how easy it is for the lenders to gain possession orders through the courts. I was dealing with a family in Drimnagh of two adults and their children aging from very young to a teenager. They lost their income having been self-employed with a small business that collapsed in the economic crisis. The family engaged at all times with their lender through the Central Bank's mortgage arrears process. They had third party representation through the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation. A proposal to resolve their problems was put forward under the mortgage to rent scheme. The family met all of the conditions and a housing association agreed to pay the market value for the property. The lender, Stepstone, refused point blank to accept the proposal, went to court and obtained a possession order. The family is preparing to move to rented accommodation. While they are entitled to social housing, social housing accommodation simply does not exist. That is the reality for a family that went through the whole process, engaged and was turned down. The Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation tried to take this matter to court on foot of the code of conduct and mortgage to rent scheme, asking why these were not being enforced on the bank. However, its arguments were not accepted by the court, which said the code and the scheme was not mandatory or legally enforceable.

This is the reality of lenders who will not touch the mortgage to rent scheme and of a general reluctance all round in relation to it. This will change only when it becomes an obligation on the banks to accept the mortgage to rent scheme and to engage. We need redress through the courts for homeowners struggling to maintain family homes in respect of lenders who refuse to engage. This morning, I was astounded and disgusted to hear that Ulster Bank was offering 2,000 homeowners in arrears who qualify for social housing the cancellation of their debt provided they made themselves and their families homeless. It is an outrageous thing to put to people who face distress and concern for their families. These are the people who should be able to avail of the mortgage to rent scheme. The scheme must change and it should be made fit for purpose. Key among the necessary changes is a raising of the valuation cap to take account of the rise in house prices, particularly in the Dublin area and other cities.

This is the second Private Members' Bill on this issue. I moved one in 2013 and there have been a number of Private Members' motions from the Opposition, but not a single idea has been accepted by the Government. I agree fully with the reduction of bankruptcy to one year pending the resolution of the mortgage crisis. This step must be taken as soon as possible. It is time to drop the pretence that lenders are dealing fairly with homeowners who engage and to take serious action to deal with this crisis. I support the Bill absolutely.

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