Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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183. To ask the Minister for Finance the measures being taken to ensure that persons who are fully compliant with their mortgage payments to a bank (details supplied) where their mortgages have now been sold to vulture funds are not unfairly evicted from their homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54145/18]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware that a reduction in the level of non performing loans (NPLs) across European banks is a major priority for the banking regulator, the SSM. The Irish banks have made significant progress in this regard since the height of the crisis with NPLs at the banks in which the State has a shareholding reducing by 70% from €54bn to €16bn at end-June 2018. A major contributor to this has been the almost 136,000 mortgage restructures that have been put in place.

Despite this progress, the NPL ratios at the Irish banks remain at an elevated level and are well above the European average of around 4%. PTSB is a particular outlier and had a ratio of 16% even after the bank’s loan sale – Project Glas – which was announced last July. Project Glenbeigh – PTSB’s second NPL transaction of 2018 announced on 29th November, will achieve a further significant reduction in the bank’s NPL ratio to below 10%.

It is important to reiterate that the protections in place for all borrowers before a sale, either by way of securitisation or otherwise, remain unchanged. Start Mortgages, who purchased the Glas portfolio in July and Pepper, who now hold legal title to the Glenbeigh mortgages and who will act as servicer and administrator of the mortgages, are both regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. When dealing with borrowers, these firms are required to comply with the Consumer Protection Code and the Code of Conduct for Mortgage Arrears. Furthermore, it has been confirmed in the case of this latest transaction that the terms of an agreed restructure will continue to be honoured.

In addition, earlier this year I asked the Central Bank to carry out a review of the CCMA to ensure it remains as effective as possible. The result of this review was published in October and it is encouraging to note that the key findings included confirmation that for borrowers who engaged with the process, the CCMA is working effectively as it is intended in the context of the sale of loans by regulated lenders.

Finally, I wish to highlight that I cannot stop loan sales, even by the banks in which the State has a shareholding. These decisions are the responsibility of the Board and management of the banks which must be run on an independent and commercial basis. The independence of the banks’ is protected by Relationship Frameworks, which are legally binding documents that I cannot change unilaterally.