Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I second the motion. As Senator Rónán Mullen said, we are talking about ordinary, decent, hard-working people who find themselves in severe debt. Members of the Government have held their heads low having inherited the problem of guaranteed bank loans. They have waited until the financial crisis has passed or, at least, have given the impression that it has passed to act and now we see a plethora of repossessions all over the country. The focus will quickly move from buy-to-let properties to residential properties and we can already see signs of this happening. Scare tactics, bullying and intimidation are commonplace. In some cases, one may see large, muscly men arriving at the door of innocent householders. It is not the sort of thing one associates with what should be regulated security organisations. The use of these mobs must stop. I am not satisfied by the case being made by the Government. I am asking that an inquiry be carried out immediately to see exactly what is going on. Let us have an investigation into the practices that have occurred to date.

Loans were given to people who had court orders for debts. I have come across one particular case where an attempt was made to repossess the family home, yet a loan was granted to a man who had two court orders for failing to repay a debt to the company that had given him a mortgage. Therefore, he had two court orders against him for unpaid debts in one part of an organisation, while another part of the same organisation had loaned him €180,000. That is difficult to explain.

As my colleague, Senator Rónán Mullen said, all communications should be made during business hours. The number of people turning up when repossessions take place should be controlled. The use of dogs or weapons is outrageous. It is like something we would have seen with the Stasi. On the concealment of faces, there is no reason anybody should wear a balaclava other than to intimidate. I fully support the notion that an appointment should be made. If the occupier of a premises is not willing to accede to the making of an appointment, a court order could be made setting the time of such an appointment.

There has been much talk about regulation by the Cental Bank.Some days ago I published a five-point plan with respect to some simple steps that could be taken to assist those in mortgage distress. My first proposal was a credit amnesty. Last night, I gave an example of a man living in Maam Cross being offered a job in Galway city. Not having a vehicle to get to Galway city, he needed to borrow money. However, because he has a mortgage arrear, he is without a credit rating. I am calling for a credit rating amnesty that would apply to anybody who has no loans other than a mortgage. If the mortgage is in distress, that should be ring-fenced and taken outside the credit rating.

My five-point plan also referred to certificates of affordability. Those who have jobs and who are trying to recover from the mess in which they find themselves, now spend significant time filling in large amounts of paperwork to meet the demands of a certificate of affordability for the banks. I am calling on the Government to appoint the Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, or a similar agency to provide certificates of affordability that could be done in a person’s own time. This could be presented to the bank and presented as a de factoposition.

I also called for the need for a communications protocol. The Central Bank insisted a communications protocol should be in place for dealing with those in mortgage arrears. Communications, however, tend to be a telephone call and, if not one, several telephone calls over weeks and months. These calls always start with satisfying the security information to ensure the bank is talking to the right person. Then the customer is asked if they are aware they are in mortgage arrears, when they intend to make the next payment, how soon the bank can expect it, are they aware that if they do not make a repayment their house is likely to be repossessed. This does not smack of what I would call normal engagement with people.

I am looking for a dedicated customer contact before we ever get to the stage where receivers are appointed. The banks were quick enough to have personal relationship managers back in the days when there was money thrown around like confetti. We need personal relationship managers now to deal with the poor unfortunates who find themselves in debt to the banks. For those who find themselves in a position that they will never be able to repay the loan in their current circumstances, rather than throwing them out of their houses, we should use rent allowance to maintain them in their homes and take whatever legal steps to protect the family home and the Department which provides rent allowance.

As I found out myself in 1983 when I walked out of Galway with nothing but the clothes on my back having lost my own house, there is always a tomorrow. Things always turn. What we need to do is support people to allow them meet that turn and get away from these bullyboys who were going out under the guise of receivership.