Results 15,421-15,440 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: They already are required to do this under the code of conduct on mortgage arrears published by the Central Bank to which all registered entities have signed up.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I have to hand the code of conduct on mortgage arrears as published by the Central Bank and will turn to the relevant provisions. The onus will be on lenders and borrowers alike to engage and to deal with the immediate problem. When I attended the presentation by Professor Jason Kilborn, he, together with everyone else with expertise on debt, all stated the critical thing is to get both the...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: On the status of the code of conduct on mortgage arrears, to be clear, the last major revision of the code was 1 January 2011. The code sets out how mortgage lenders, referred to as "lenders", must treat borrowers in or facing mortgage arrears with due regard to the fact that each case of mortgage arrears is unique and needs to be considered on its own merits. The code sets out the framework...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I am reading from the publication.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I understood an implication from some of the contributions that there was no legal basis for the code of conduct.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: It is under section 117 of the Central Bank Act 1989. The Central Bank has the power to administer sanctions for a contravention of this code under subsection (3C) of the Central Bank Act 1942 and lenders are reminded that they are required to comply with this code as a matter of law. As I stated, the last major revision was effected from 1 January 2011. The code is the code of the Central...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: In this case, what is in it for the lender is that the Department of Social Protection has set aside a budget of €50 million. Senator Byrne might ask what, in the overall scheme of things with banks, is a mere €50 million and I can understand that. Nonetheless, the banks are very anxious to have as much payment towards the debts of their poor unfortunate customers in mortgage difficulty...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I reiterate that one is endeavouring to bring the lender into a process whereby the lender has to make certain accommodations with the borrower. In most cases, a borrower will get into difficulty over quite a period of time and it does not tend to occur instantly. The measure is an effort to ensure that the lender engages in the process. Senator Byrne asked what expertise was available to...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I ask the Senator to bear with me. I have met the people at the coalface and I am not satisfied with the level of engagement by banks. In reply to Senator Zappone's question as to whether existing borrowers would be affected, the answer is "No". This provision applies to new entrants into the process.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: Yes, it will take a longer -----

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: If there was more engagement by the lenders at the very beginning of the process, it is quite likely that fewer borrowers would end up in the same level of difficulty. That is one of the problems. This legislation is only a very small part of the total picture but it is a substantial financial commitment. Following our discussion this morning, I ask what would €50 million do for...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: The Taoiseach and the Tánaiste meet the banks quite regularly to talk to them about how they are dealing with poor, unfortunate families who are worried about keeping the roof over their head. In addition, the regulator, Mr. Elderfield, also has regular meetings. I am certain the observations of the Senators reflect their experience from meeting people in this kind of trouble, to both the...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: The Department has commenced the phased introduction of the new public services card as part of the standard authentication framework environment, SAFE programme. The introduction of the card and the associated registration process has been piloted in a number of local offices around the country, including in Tullamore, Sligo and Kings Inns in Dublin. So far, approximately 6,000 cards have...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: The Department has devoted a long number of years' work into the development of this system. Biometric identity security is very well advanced. For example, members of gyms and other clubs are perfectly happy to allow their thumb print or iris print as a confirmation of identity. At this stage, our system relies on a photograph and a signature. I will come back to Senator Kelly as regards...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: One of the strange features of the Irish social welfare system is that the calculation of days goes back to when social welfare was first created. The social welfare week is based on a six-day week and Sunday is not included for calculating earnings for social welfare purposes. This goes back to the time when people often worked a half day on Saturdays and the only people who worked on...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: As Senator Darragh O'Brien is aware, the price was never formally reduced.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: Is that "green" in a Republican or environmental sense?

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: It is the first time the green-----

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: Yes.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (30 Apr 2012)

Joan Burton: I do not propose to accept amendments Nos. 9 and 10. As supplementary pension schemes are usually established under irrevocable trust the assets of the scheme are legally separate from the assets of the employer. Under trust law, trustees of occupational pension schemes are required to act in the best interests of scheme members and have the principal responsibility of ensuring that the...