Vol. 558 No. 4
424 Mr. Dennehy asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to recent comments by the director of social policy of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul regarding the increasing problem of home repossessions; if he has up-to-date figures on the extent of the problem; and the proposals he has to help people who find themselves in these circumstances. [24778/02]
I understand that the comments from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul related to general levels of personal credit, and not, as reported, to home repossessions. The overall level of repossessions has declined in recent years. According to data published by the Irish Mortgage and Savings Association (IMSA), a representative organisation for mortgage lenders in Ireland, mortgage arrears have declined steadily from 1995 to date. The number of properties taken into possession by IMSA members remains extremely low, and total repossessions have fallen from 193 in 1995 to 25 in 2001. While the IMSA have not published figures for 2002, indications to date are that repossession levels will be slightly lower than in 2001.
According to the Irish Bankers Federation which also represents the retail banking sector, figures for repossession of homes by banks remain negligible.
