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

I seek to bring to the attention of the House the activities in recent times of some lending institutions, fund managers and their successors. This mainly relates to funds that were sold over from the pillar banks in a package to the investment fund managers. Some of them are being sold on again to third parties. I am not too certain whether they are fully regulated, but I am sure they are. I am concerned at the tendency - I observe a new urgency now - on the part of asset managers who, with a renewed vigour, seem to have the attitude of pursuing the borrowers in a way that was not evident in the past.

This also relates to cases where the lending institutions concerned, or their forebears, had ample opportunity to enter into an arrangement with the borrowers but they always rejected whatever offer was put forward on the basis that it was unsustainable. It was unsustainable from their point of view but readily sustainable from the point of view of the borrower in reducing the debt. In many cases that offer was refused and as a result the debt remains and has increased. Obviously it has increased with interest rates and so on. Notwithstanding all of the help that has been made available by various ways and means, I also observe a tendency to cut corners, for instance by getting an updated repossession order for a property after the property was repossessed and sold. I do not mind people pretending that they can do these things and get away with it but I do not believe we should allow any institution get away with that kind of nonsense because it is establishing a precedent that gives them huge power over the borrower. Do not let us forget that the borrowers in many of these cases are people who over the last ten years or so were subjected to continuous harassment from the lender. In one case that I am aware of, the lending institution representative appeared on the doorstep of a widow on a nightly basis or until such time as he forced her out of the house and forced the sale of the house in order to keep his books balanced.

All of this occurred as a result of the lending institutions of this country lending unwisely. They will say that the borrower had a hand in this as well. Yes, we know that but the lending institutions were primarily responsible for lending to the extent way beyond the collateral available, and which they knew was not there. They had always in their minds the intention of ensuring they did not lose. I suggest that we examine what is going on at present to look at the tendency to put people into receivership in much quicker order than previously, and the forcing of the issue to a conclusion in a way that is not to the advantage of the borrower. These unfortunate people have suffered a great deal over the past number of years not as a result of what they did themselves but because of what the banks did to the country in general when they put the country in hock to themselves. It was nobody else. They held all of the cards. I ask the Minister of State this morning to ensure we look at them very carefully, and examine their activities with a view to finding out if they are cutting corners and, if so, where they are doing so and to what extent.

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