Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise an important issue. Thousands of families in Donegal are affected by defective mica-affected concrete blocks. This has devastated them. We welcome the fact that a scheme administered by Donegal County Council will be operational soon to help the families make their homes safe. Unlike with the pyrite redress scheme, however, families in Donegal have been required to provide a 10% contribution. If this involves a complete rebuild, 10% will be a significant amount for families who are paying mortgages on homes that have been destroyed by this blight in our county. The Mica Action Group has done some excellent work. It has engaged with financial institutions and has received a fairly positive response to its call for the banks and other financial institutions that hold mortgages on thousands of these homes to make a contribution to help with that 10% and to make the scheme happen. What is required from Government is for the Minister for Finance to engage with the Central Bank to bring together all the banks and other financial institutions in a cross-lender approach such that everybody is on the same page and the families can be reassured that when the scheme is announced, they will have the financial supports to make their homes safe again. This would be completely in the interests of the banks and other financial institutions because right now the real value of these properties is rapidly deteriorating. The homes would be made safe and their value restored to the full market rate, which is what everybody wants. I ask the Leader to refer this matter to the Minister for Finance today and to ask him to engage urgently with the Central Bank and the financial institutions to get this resolved in order that when the scheme is up and running soon, those supports will be in place.