Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 108: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he has read the Law Reform Commission's recent report and recommendation on debt enforcement; if and when he intends to implement these recommendations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44876/09]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 109: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the proposals envisaged under the Revised Programme for Government to help those in debt; if he will elaborate on proposals to introduce personal insolvency regulations allowing for a statutory non-court based debt settlement system; when he expects these new regulations to come into force; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44882/09]

Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Question 118: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the position regarding the commitment to create a new system of personal insolvency regulations allowing for a statutory non-court-based debt settlement system in view of the fact that the courts are still being used in instances of personal debt resulting in the jailing of debtors; the action he proposes to take to suspend the use of the courts and of prison sentences as a sanction in personal debt cases, pending the introduction of the promised new method of dealing with personal debt or insolvency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46484/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 108, 109 and 118.

The Government is committed to implementing substantial reform of the system, legal and administrative, as it affects those in personal debt. The reform commitment is based on the work of the Law Reform Commission who having published its Consultation Paper entitled "Personal Debt Management and Debt Enforcement", intends to finalise its recommendations as a matter of priority. To date, the Commission has made a total of 123 provisional recommendations that include: replacement of legislation on enforcement of debt, new insolvency regulation laws, regulation of debt collectors and the basis for an out of court settlement approach as soon as possible.

I can inform the House that the Government has approved the establishment of an Inter-Departmental Working Group on Personal Debt Management and Enforcement to (a) consider the commitment under "Helping those in Debt" envisaged in the revised Programme for Government; (b) agree a plan for implementation where appropriate of the recommendations of the Law Reform Commission; (c) assist in the development of a coherent and comprehensive administrative and legislative response to the issues arising; and (d) determine those measures, administrative and legislative, that can be implemented in a cost efficient manner, for early effective results.

The Deputies will recall that, with the cooperation of the House, I recently promoted to enactment the Enforcement of Court Orders (Amendment) Act 2009. I brought this forward following a High Court judgment earlier this year, and it provides that certain safeguards will apply to the provisions under which a court may hear an application or grant an imprisonment order against a debtor who has failed to comply with an instalment order. The Act ensures that the court will not imprison the debtor unless it is satisfied that he has the means to pay and may also postpone the execution of an imprisonment order until such time as it thinks just. In addition, the court will inform a debtor of the risk of imprisonment and of his entitlement to apply for legal aid. The Act gives the court a clear power to vary the terms of an order to pay by instalments or alternatively to refer the parties for mediation.