Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive reply, which is greatly appreciated. I agree it will be of benefit in pursuing the issue once again with the current lenders. The one fault that I and many other Members in this House have raised regarding such issues is that the MARP that is available is something the lenders draw up and immediately tell the borrower and those acting on their behalf that they do not qualify and cannot get the benefit, that the borrower has a distressed loan and that the lender believes he or she does not have the ability to discharge it. That does not mean that it is impossible to resolve it. There is almost €170,000 in interest in this particular situation, which is a considerable amount of money, particularly when part of the loan is covered by a very low interest tracker mortgage. There are many issues to be discussed in regard to this case and it should be possible to bring about a satisfactory resolution.

The most important thing is that Deputies have access to the Ceann Comhairle to raise these issues and to the Central Bank via the relevant committees of the House to be assured that what is happening is in accordance with the legislation, due process and best practice. I thank the Minister of State for his reply and the Ceann Comhairle for facilitating me in raising the issue.

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