Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 July 2012
592 Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the estimated numbers who will avail of the debt relief mechanisms outlined under the Personal Insolvency Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36413/12]
View answerIn my second stage speech on the Personal Insolvency Bill 2012 in Dáil Éireann on 5 July 2012, I gave an indication of the possible number of persons who might avail of the new debt settlement mechanisms. My statement on the matter was as follows:
".........As to the issue of the number of persons who may seek to avail of the new or reformed insolvency processes, it is difficult to be precise. It will very much depend on individual circumstances and the nature and extent of the debts involved. However, for broad planning purposes, there is a tentative estimate, based on a rough extrapolation from the comparable UK and Northern Ireland situations, of the following applications for the first full year of operation of the new law and systems:
(a) 15,000 applications for non-judicial debt resolution — Debt Settlement Arrangement and Personal Insolvency Arrangement,
(b) 3,000 to 4,000 applications for Debt Relief Notices, and
(c) 3,000 plus bankruptcy applications. (There were about 30 bankruptcy adjudications in 2011).
Again, I would stress that these estimates are tentative. Not all insolvencies will require to be dealt with under the new statutory debt resolution processes or bankruptcy. I would expect that the certainty brought to the future legal landscape by this Bill will encourage debtors and creditors to bilaterally agree alternative solutions including in respect of mortgage debt under the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process operated by mortgage lenders under the supervision of the Central Bank......"
