Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. We need a greater throughput on the issue of mortgage to rent. Fewer than 100 cases have been completed. The process needs to be revamped, streamlined and made more efficient. We need a clear definition of what a sustainable solution is from the point of view of the borrower and we need consistency in its application. Personal insolvency practitioners, PIPs, need to be more available via a publicly funded panel of PIPs to persons who are dealing with debt. We need those solutions that are working to be deployed. The most popular is one of the least effective, namely, arrears capitalisation. We need consistency in the way split mortgages are treated.

I will revert to my initial point. Above all else, we need the final say in the restructuring of a person's mortgage to be taken out of the hands of the bank and put in the hands of someone or something that is independent, be it the Insolvency Service of Ireland or a court of law. Perhaps the Minister will address this issue and confirm the accuracy of media reports to the effect that the Government is planning changes along these lines so as to dilute the banks' veto at a minimum or, ideally, to remove it.

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