I propose to take Questions Nos. 235 and 236 together.
The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) provided services to 16,600 new clients in the period to end December 2008. In addition, 2,441 people sought information about budgeting and money management. The MABS National Helpline received approximately 11,000 calls in 2008.
The detailed statistical breakdown of clients per centre requested by the Deputy is not readily available from the MABSIS. However the national MABS statistics show that the majority of new clients were on social welfare payments (59%), the highest numbers being almost 2,900 (17%) who were in receipt of the one parent family payment, 3,000 (18%) who were in receipt of jobseekers payments and 2,300 (14%) in receipt of illness/disability payments. Some 28% of clients were in receipt of wages and 3% were self-employed.
Clients mostly lived in rented accommodation, with 27% living in private rented accommodation and 24% in rented local authority accommodation. People with mortgages made up 28% of clients and 7% lived with parents. The total owed by new clients in 2008 to creditors, based on the debt they had when they first came to the MABS, amounted to €205 million, which works out at an average amount of €12,400 debt per client. Of the total amount of debt 64% was owed to banks/financial institutions, 16% was owed to credit unions, 3% was owed in respect of utilities bills and 1% was owed to moneylenders. Information on new clients per MABS company up to the end of December 2008 is detailed in the following table.
Money Advice and Budgeting Service — New Clients
Company
|
New clients at 31st December 2008
|
Arklow
|
253
|
Athlone
|
188
|
Ballymun
|
543
|
Blanchardstown
|
422
|
Bray
|
574
|
Carlow
|
677
|
Cavan
|
205
|
Charleville
|
111
|
Clare
|
298
|
Clondalkin
|
322
|
COMAC
|
410
|
Cork
|
970
|
North Cork
|
384
|
West Cork
|
288
|
North Donegal
|
264
|
South Donegal
|
93
|
West Donegal
|
25
|
Drogheda
|
146
|
Dublin 12 Area
|
242
|
Dublin North City
|
257
|
Dublin North East
|
383
|
Dublin South East
|
181
|
Dundalk
|
188
|
Dundrum/Rathfarnham
|
293
|
Dun Laoghaire
|
411
|
Fingal
|
224
|
Finglas
|
482
|
North Galway
|
347
|
South Galway
|
602
|
Kerry
|
684
|
Kildare
|
457
|
Kilkenny
|
363
|
Laois
|
414
|
Leitrim
|
117
|
Liffey South West
|
310
|
Limerick
|
592
|
Longford
|
151
|
North Mayo
|
113
|
South Mayo
|
222
|
Meath
|
179
|
Monaghan
|
128
|
Mullingar
|
191
|
Offaly
|
223
|
Roscommon
|
158
|
Sligo
|
210
|
Tallaght
|
438
|
North Tipperary
|
206
|
South Tipperary
|
546
|
Waterford
|
624
|
West Waterford
|
186
|
Wexford
|
305
|