Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)

Many questions have been asked. I cannot really be expected to engage in a Committee Stage debate on the insolvency Bill before Second Stage has taken place. I cannot deal with the aspects of the legislation with which they might disagree in the level of detail they might demand. The Minister, Deputy Shatter, will take the Bill. He has already said he will consider further amendments over the summer after he has heard Second Stage contributions in the Dáil. I am sure he will listen to the views of Senators when the legislation is debated in this House. It is a work in progress. The Minister listened to the discussion on the heads of the Bill. Now it has moved on again. It is important to remember that the insolvency Bill is about insolvency in general. It is not just about insolvency due to impaired mortgages, which is the issue in the forefront of our minds. This corpus of legislation will deal with indebtedness in general, all the way from voluntary arrangements to bankruptcy. This is one of the revolutionary changes that are needed. We have had our bankruptcy legislation for a long time. When I was Minister for Justice in the 1980s, I introduced the bankruptcy legislation which is now being reformed. The previous Act had been in place for over 100 years. We are not great at addressing bankruptcy.

Senator Darragh O'Brien asked many detailed questions. I cannot really deal with them. The Minister, Deputy Shatter, will do so when the Bill is considered on Committee Stage in this House. I disagree with what he said about the mortgage-to-rent scheme being a single option. There is a range of options. If one is living in a housing estate and in long-term unemployment, having lost one's job, and the threat of repossession is hanging over one because one cannot make any contribution to one's mortgage repayments due to being on social welfare, the housing agency or the local authority will give one the status of somebody who is renting rather than somebody who is paying a mortgage. That will allow one to remain in one's family home with the same set of friends and neighbours. One's kids will continue to be able to attend the local school. One's status will change from being an owner-occupier to being a renter. That reasonable solution already applies to approximately 100 satisfied people. The Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, is driving that agenda forward rapidly.

I would like to acknowledge the contributions made by all the other Senators. We will take them into account. My officials are taking notes. We will ensure the thoughts of Senators are considered as part of the debate. Senator O'Donnell spoke about the importance of banks. Traditionally, we have given too much respect to the banks at times. Banks are shops that buy and sell money.