James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Question 131: To ask the Minister for Finance the reason a person (details supplied) in County Longford should be expected to pay what they consider to be an unfair higher interest rate on their bank loan with the Bank of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37568/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The Bank of Ireland is a private company and, as Minister for Finance, I have no direct function in the relationship between the bank and its customers. Nonetheless, Bank of Ireland has informed me that, given their customer confidentiality obligations, they believe that the best way to deal with this matter is by means of direct contact from the customer to the bank.

James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Question 132: To ask the Minister for Finance the action that can be taken to assist a person (details supplied) who is being threatened with eviction by a financial institution due to being in arrears caused by circumstances outside their control; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37574/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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It is not be appropriate for me, as Minister for Finance, to become involved in the detailed mortgage position of an individual borrower and lender. However, there are a number of public policy measures in place to assist people experiencing difficulties with the mortgage on their primary residence. The Central Bank Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears is the key framework that governs the relationship between lenders and borrowers who are in arrears, or facing arrears, on their mortgage. The Code provides a number of protections to borrowers. These include the establishment of a formal Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process (MARP) to deal with mortgage customers who are in arrears or pre-arrears, the establishment of dedicated Arrears Support Units and a separate internal appeals process by lenders to deal with individuals on a case by case basis. The Code also provides that a lender must not apply to the Courts to commence legal action for the repossession of a borrower's private residence until every reasonable effort has been made to agree an alternative arrangement with the borrower and that, where a borrower co-operates with the lender, the lender must wait at least twelve months from the date the borrower is classified as a MARP case before applying to the Court to commence legal action for repossession of a borrower's primary residence. This twelve month period does not include any time where the borrower is complying with the terms of any alternative arrangement agreed with the lender, or being processed by the internal Appeals Board, or any time during which a complaint against the lender against any aspect of the Mortgage Arrears Code is being processed by the Financial Services Ombudsman's Office.

As the Deputy is aware, in addition to the provisions of the Mortgage Arrears Code, there are other public measures in place to assist eligible mortgage holders experiencing difficulty in respect of the mortgage on their primary home such as the Department of Social Protection Mortgage Interest Supplement scheme, and the provision of a free, confidential and independent financial advice service from the Money Advice and Budgeting Service.

The Government is acutely aware of the increasing financial stress that some households are facing arising from difficulty in meeting their mortgage commitments and, as the Deputy is aware, steps have already been taken to implement recommendations made in the report of the Inter Departmental Group on Mortgage Arrears. In addition, following the conclusion of the Dáil debate on the report, I intend to formally put forward proposals to the Government on next steps, including an implementation mechanism to be driven by my Department.