Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I take on board what the Minister said. We have come a long way in our analysis of the banking sector in terms of from where we have come and where we are now, but we are trying to acknowledge a David and Goliath scenario where people who might be in difficulty with a mortgage are not in as strong a negotiating position as the bank. The repayments they have entered into with their banks which might be interest only and so on only kick can down the road, as the Minister said. The substantial capital sum still remains to be repaid on properties that were significantly overvalued, but this is not being taken into consideration. A mechanism is needed to address it. People expected that through this legislation we would examine the issue of banks having to take into account their own recklessness in the way they dealt with the market. However, I appreciate this might not be the strongest of amendments. Perhaps I will re-examine the issue and table an amendment on Report Stage to take on board a common perspective we both have on the way the banks have treated individuals who took out loans in recent years.