Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 143: To ask the Minister for Finance the steps that have been taken to implement the recommendation in the inter-departmental mortgage arrears working group, known as the Keane report, to establish an independent mortgage advice function; if he will confirm if the process of recruiting the 100 independent mortgage advisers has commenced; when he hopes to have the service up and running; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11349/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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A Steering Group, chaired by a Second Secretary General in my Department and comprising senior representation from Government Departments and the Central Bank, has been established to oversee and drive the implementation of the various recommendations contained in the report of the Inter-Departmental Working Group on Mortgage Arrears across Government. As part of this, separate working groups have also been established to progress the individual work items and these individual groups report to the overall Steering Group.

One of the report's recommendations was that an independent mortgage advice function should be established to advise and support mortgage holders in their dealings with mortgage lenders and to help build trust in the debt resolution process. The Department of Social Protection is the lead Department on the mortgage advisory function work stream and is chairing the relevant working group. I understand that, in a recent Parliamentary Answer (Ref 10447/12), the Minister for Social Protection indicated that her Department is currently examining the issues relating to the establishment of the Mortgage Advice Service and, as part of this, is also examining the efficiency, necessity and governance arrangements of this proposed service in the light of, inter alia, the role envisaged for Personal Insolvency Trustees as outlined in the Heads of a Personal Insolvency Bill as recently published by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence.