Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Bill introduced by my party colleague, Deputy Pearse Doherty. Unfortunately, in recent years it has become very clear that voluntary codes of practice for financial institutions and banks are not worth the paper they are written on. Permanent TSB has signed up to the Central Bank's code of practice for the transfer of mortgages which states that a mortgage on a home cannot be transferred without the written consent of the borrower. This same bank has sold thousands of home loans to vulture funds and third parties. The families who had these loans were paying back the money they owed. They had agreements in place and were doing everything they were supposed to do but Permanent TSB was happy to sell their loans to a vulture fund.

It is quite telling that banks, many of which were bailed out by the taxpayer when their gross mismanagement led to the banking crisis, are now turning on those who are doing their best to repay their loans. I would have thought, given the disaster caused by the banks in this State, that the Government would have stepped in and tightened up regulations in this area. The Minister cannot stand by as banks throw their customers to the vulture funds. This legislation is just one example of what the Government should have done. Most vulture funds have no interest in working with borrowers to restructure or renegotiate their loans. They want to get their hands on the home to sell it for profit.

This Bill makes sense. It reinforces what the Central Bank has already outlined as the correct way to deal with loans.

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