Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I am sharing time with Deputy Healy. I welcome the measures in the Bill, which go some way towards alleviating the mortgage crisis and offsetting the looming spectre of a new wave of homelessness caused by people facing repossessions of homes they simply cannot afford at this time. It is hard to believe that, almost ten years after the property crash, we are still talking about this as a substantial issue.

The Bill makes provision for a number of potential remedies where mortgage holders find themselves in distress. The NUI Maynooth report, published this morning, makes it clear that we have not yet reached the peak of the housing emergency and that things are likely to escalate over the next five years. At a time when the Government response to the emergency is to try to portray family hubs as an attractive option, it is vital that measures to help stem further homelessness are embraced and encouraged. While there will always be a limited number of cases where repossession is actually the best option for all parties, that is, in cases where things are and will continue to be simply unsustainable, for the most part it makes no sense to allow lenders to march people through the courts process in vast numbers every week and force them into homelessness. Many cases simply require a bit of breathing space for people to get back on their feet following the recent years of austerity and job losses, while many others just need time to readjust to the change in circumstances. We have all had experiences of people telling us they had experienced ill health or a family crisis that made it difficult for them to get back on their feet. The Bill provides options which can become a lifeline for people who simply need a bit of breathing space. There are good options, such as mortgage to rent, but it is incredibly difficult to get from A to Z in that scheme.

It makes no economic or social sense to turf people out of their homes when, given a bit of time, they can get themselves back on track or be assisted to do so. The mortgage arrears crisis costs us either way. If the system continues in its pursuit of repossession orders, society will pick up the cost because the people involved will not have the wherewithal to house themselves once they have lost their home. Going back and looking for another mortgage is not going to be an option and we all know the length of the housing waiting list. We either put in place the mechanisms to prevent, as far as practicable, the current practice of constant repossessions or we accept that we pay the price, both economically and societally, of forcing families into homelessness and children into hostels or hubs, with all the heartache and damage that causes to the individuals and to the social fabric of our country. We already are seeing people going through physical and mental health problems with the stress they are constantly under and all Members can testify to that from the people they meet in our constituency offices. The children or today's hubs are far more likely to be the disenchanted youth of tomorrow. We are storing up problems for ourselves if we do not accept the entirety of the housing emergency. It is not just about a roof over our heads - it is the social aspect too.

Far too many people pass through our offices who fail to get the solutions that are supposed to be there. Others are simply looking for breathing space or are pleading with the lender for a little bit more time, only for it to get worse as house prices increase. This cannot be tolerated in a civilised society and Government has a responsibility not to take a laissez-faireapproach to this emergency but tackle it head on in a proactive and urgent fashion. This Bill provides a mechanism to do that to some extent. It is not complete but it is certainly very useful. We have to get past the point of talking about this and actually do something about it and the Bill goes some way towards that.

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