Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The proof of the pudding was the result of my colleague, Senator Thomas Byrne, who did not quite double his vote but increased it from 19% to 34%. This was positive and indicates the lustre of going back. The point being made to me was that the parties in government should deal with the issues. They knew what was in store when coming into office and made loads of promises.

The banks really control the show. The Personal Insolvency Act is a dream. I hope it works but it will not resolve the major issues we are dealing with on a daily basis. We think of people in Dublin who purchased apartments and houses and who are now in negative equity but the situation applies across rural Ireland. I recently came across a young man whose planning permission was delayed for three years. He eventually started building and, by the time the recession bit and he lost his job, he had the structure of a house in place. There was no plumbing and no kitchen installed. It was uninhabitable but when he looked for a few euro from the social welfare office, they pointed out that he had a house. They put a notional value on his house, which was uninhabitable, and he was denied any assistance from the Department of Social Protection. There is a lack of joined-up thinking. The banks would not give him the money to complete his house and it is probably not the right way to go because he does not have a job. It is wrong for the Minister and the Government to dismiss out of hand the Mortgage Resolution Bill proposed by Fianna Fáil. There are interesting points in the Bill. Some 180,000 loans are in serious arrears, with 80% of them concerning family homes. There is a worry that, despite commitments given, family homes will be repossessed. It is a real fear.

I urge the Minister of State to speak to the senior Ministers in his party and to put a gun to the heads of the banks. It happened in our Government last time. The banks called the shots and told a ball of lies to the former Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan, and others. Brian Lenihan, who is now deceased, sat in that chair and said the total bank problem was in the region of €5 billion to €7 billion. That was the information he had been given and he provided it to us in good faith. Some four years later, the banks have received substantial funding but have not dealt with the problem. Time will tell whether the proposals are of some benefit to the beleaguered borrowers and whether the banks are still calling the shots. The Personal Insolvency Act, even though the Minister of State may not agree, contains a veto for the banks. The banks are the final arbiters.

Fianna Fáil proposed splitting mortgages, a procedure under which part of the loan is parked for ten years. In some cases, that may be necessary. Another proposal is for interest-only payments for up to four years. I know a businessman who, unfortunately, had three properties. He was able to pay the mortgage on his family home and he had a commercial building and a buy-to-let property. The banks refused to accept an interest-only arrangement. For the past two years, nothing has been paid. If he was allowed, with a struggle he could have paid the interest portion on the other two properties. I remain to be convinced that the banks are really in this game to assist beleaguered borrowers. The banks have too much power and control and owe it to the taxpayers to treat fairly those in serious mortgage arrears, particularly in respect of family homes. People ask why debt forgiveness should happen but in some cases there is no alternative. The banks should look at this and take the bull by the horns. Banks have been recapitalised and the outcome on the ground does not reflect the money that has been put in. The banks are doing little or nothing for the ordinary Joe Soap and the beleaguered mortgage holders in desperate situations. The message for the Minister of State to take back is that I do not trust the banks. The previous Government and the current Government are being led a merry dance by the banks.