Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I reckon everyone here shares the same objective. What happens when a court comes to consider the new section 2A of the 2013 Act? The legislation, as drafted at present, seems fairly clear to me. The proposed section 2A(1) states: "This section applies to proceedings brought by a mortgagee seeking an order for possession of land to which the mortgage relates and which land is land to which section 2 applies". Any judge hearing an application under this section will say it does not matter whether the mortgage was made after the enactment of the legislation. What planet would judges think we are living on if we introduced legislation to deal with the difficult situation that people face where there are applications for repossession of their properties? That is not a perspective issue we need to deal with in the context of future mortgages. It is clearly to deal with existing mortgages. For that reason I do not think it is necessary to amend it. I understand the point Deputy Ó Laoghaire is making.

I can appreciate that its purpose is to ensure clarity, but I would be astonished if a Circuit Court judge, or any judge hearing an application, told someone whose house was being repossessed that the legislation did not apply to him or her because the mortgage was created before its enactment. I am also concerned that inserting language such as "irrespective of when the mortgage was created" could have an impact on other legislation which clearly apply to mortgages created before their enactment. Financial institutions could then potentially claim that other legislation does not apply to mortgages that existed prior to its enactment because it does not have the words "irrespective of when the mortgage was created" in it.

I acknowledge the point Deputy Ó Laoghaire is making. However, on balance, I am concerned because I think there is politics behind this as well. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, has done well to get this legislation through, and I do not think he has the universal support of all members of the Government in that, the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, excluded. I would be concerned that if an amendment is made to this Bill, the more powerful side of the Government will say it has to be looked at again, and it will hand it back to the Attorney General and delay it. This relates to the whole section because it is on the first part, section 2A(1), so while I accept the points that have been made, Fianna Fáil will be abstaining on this.

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