Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate. It is interesting to listen to Government Members likewise welcoming the chance to debate, discuss, deliberate and have a serious conversation on these issues. I noticed, however, that very few of them used the word "action". In fact, some of those Members did not even realise we are debating legislation when they asked us not to press a division later tonight. They talked about this issue not having to do with politics. The reality, of course, is that politics is about making choices and introducing policies that will make society better for all the people who live in it.

The time for debate, deliberation and serious conversation was earlier this year, when my colleague Deputy Michael McGrath put down notice of a motion. I acknowledge that on foot of that notice of motion and after considerable pressure was brought to bear on him, the Minister, Deputy Michael Noonan, agreed to haul in the banks to discuss the issue. That display was designed to show he was a man of action who would deliver results. Some of us thought the people in charge of the banks must be quaking in their boots at the Minister's arrival in their office. We realise now, with the deadline of 1 July having come and gone, that they were not quaking in their boots at all. In fact, they probably laughed at the Minister when he left their office. They certainly took no heed of the pressure he put on them. Two of the six financial institutions have taken no action at all. ACC introduced a miserable reduction of 0.25 of a percentage point, and KBC's response was likewise absolutely minimal.

When my party leader questioned the Taoiseach on this issue last week, the latter seemed to be under the impression that the changes could only come about on 1 July. He apparently did not realise that this was the deadline by which the banks had to report back. The Minister, Deputy Noonan, has the reputation of being a very competent, capable and able Minister. However, he did his reputation no good last night when he made his statement in Brussels that progress has been made on this issue. Progress has not been made and he is fooling himself if he believes it has. He talked about a reduction in fixed interest rates. Does he not realise that switching to a fixed rate is not something every mortgage holder can do because it ties them in for a two-year period? He referred to people switching their mortgages from one financial institution to another. Again, this is not something all homeowners can do, perhaps because they are in negative equity or do not have the resources to pay the solicitor's fees to effect the transfer.

It is interesting to hear Government Members talk about being reluctant to intervene with the Central Bank in a context in which that body has not sought any new legislation or powers. Yet the same Members constantly criticise the previous Administration for not intervening with the Central Bank at particular times in the past. Some Government speakers suggested that in the event that the Central Bank does look for new powers, this legislation might be good enough after all. All of this raises the question of who exactly is running the country and making the decisions. The Minister and his colleagues are in the privileged position of being able to enact legislation that can make this country a better place for citizens. What is interesting to note at the same time is the following statement by the former Minister of State at the Department of Finance and now MEP, Mr. Brian Hayes, last February: "We can now say with certainty that Irish homebuyers are being ripped off by banks, particularly when you consider the eurozone average variable mortgage rate which is 2.47 per cent."

Compare the treatment that Irish taxpayers who are struggling day in and day out to keep a roof over their heads, put food on the table and send their children to school have met with at the hands of the banks, with no intervention by the Minister, with the treatment that certain well-heeled and well-connected people are getting from the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation. The contrast is quite alarming. That so many Government Members chose to contribute to this debate is a clear sign this is a real issue for their constituents. We have been told that if nothing happens by budget day, the Minister will intervene. People are being left to drown in the same swamp they have been drowning in for several years until budget day when, apparently, they might be thrown some type of lifebuoy.

The Minister would not listen to us when we urged him to remove the bank veto on personal insolvency arrangements. He ignored our warning regarding the devastating consequences of withdrawing mortgage income supplement. He has since had to row back on some of those issues. I implore the Minister tonight, on behalf of the people I represent in Longford and Westmeath, to wake up and smell the coffee. He needs to introduce legislation. The banks cannot be left to their own devices, as they have proved in the past and continue to prove in the present. The time for discussion, debate, deliberation and serious conversation is over. The time for action is now, and the Minister is the man who is in a position to ensure it is taken. I implore him to do so.

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