Results 6,901-6,920 of 9,894 for speaker:Thomas Byrne

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Could Mr. Boucher say that no one has got a debt write-down in capital or arrears in the past year?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Could Mr. Boucher tell us how many people did?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: But clearly people have received a debt write-down from Bank of Ireland and I would like Mr. Boucher to tell the committee how many have got one.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: So Mr. Boucher is not prepared to give the committee the figures in that regard.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Is Mr. Boucher prepared to give the figures to the committee for the amount of write-downs of capital and arrears that Bank of Ireland has given in the past year?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: That is standard for banks.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Sure, but how many bankruptcies have taken place in the past year? Very few. That is not an issue.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: But the point is that reading between the lines, there clearly is a practice, even if it is an unofficial one, that Bank of Ireland offers write-downs on capital and arrears of mortgages.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: I am sorry, but how many people have gone through the insolvency process with Bank of Ireland and agreed a write-off, or not agreed a write-off, as part of the process? I estimate it is very few. It is a handful.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: We are aware of the corporate write-downs, but I am interested in the mortgage book. Off the top of my head, the public cases of write-offs relate to corporate accounts, not individual customers. Reading between the lines I presume customers can avail of write-downs in Bank of Ireland if they push hard.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Has Bank of Ireland offered write-downs outside of the insolvency process or the bankruptcy process? We know there have not been that many of those processes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Has Bank of Ireland never done it?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: So the bank has clearly been offering write-downs of capital and arrears.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: I did say in the last year in some of my questions-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Never in the last year.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: But the legal process for the bank includes the issuing of a legal threat.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: It seems there clearly are people – Mr. Boucher admitted there was a public case of which I am aware in relation to corporates – who are getting debt write-downs from Bank of Ireland of capital and arrears who are mortgage customers. I propose that the committee write to Bank of Ireland seeking those figures if it is not prepared to give the information today. Mr. Boucher has...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Mr. Boucher mentioned insolvency and bankruptcy. We already put on record how few of those there were. Mr. Boucher included the issuing of legal letters in the legal process so one would presume-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: Does Mr. Boucher mean by a court?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process: (Resumed) Bank of Ireland (10 Apr 2014)

Thomas Byrne: The language has been extremely vague and we should write to the bank and specify the exact information I seek today.