Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

At the same time, the Bill includes strong provisions to ensure that any bankrupt person who tries to conceal his or her resources from creditors or evade his or her obligations will end up with a longer bankruptcy term and a longer bankruptcy payment order. The Bill makes important changes to modernise bankruptcy procedures, reduce unnecessary costs and ensure that the official assignee has effective powers to focus on the small minority of bankruptcies in which there may be issues of fraud and concealment. This Bill is a further example of the Government's commitment to bringing forward reforms to ensure a more enlightened, less punitive and less costly approach to addressing intractable debt, and a fair balance between the interests of debtors and creditors. I commend this Bill to the House.