Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 September 2014
248. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Finance the steps he will take to protect from eviction the homeowners living in the homes that are part of Ulster Bank's sale of non-performing home loans, Project Aran; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33987/14]
View answerIrish financial services legislation, including Codes issued by the Central Bank of Ireland, provide strong protections to borrowers when dealing with regulated lenders. In particular, for borrowers facing financial difficulty on a mortgage which is secured on a primary residence, the Central Bank's Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears ("CCMA") sets out requirements for mortgage lenders dealing with borrowers facing or in mortgage arrears. The CCMA provides a strong consumer protection framework to ensure that borrowers struggling to keep up mortgage repayments are treated in a fair and transparent manner by their lender, and that long term resolution is sought by lenders with each of their borrowers who are in genuine mortgage difficulty.
The CCMA applies to the mortgage lending activities of all regulated entities, except credit unions, operating in the State, including, inter alia, a financial services provider authorised, registered or licensed in another EU or EEA Member State and which has provided, or is providing, mortgage lending activities in the State. However, the sale of a loan book by a regulated entity to an unregulated entity does not require Central Bank approval. Nevertheless, as the Deputy will be aware, the Government is currently considering a further legislative proposal to provide that CCMA protections will continue to be available to those consumers whose mortgages are sold to unregulated entities. Furthermore, it should also be noted that, even if a repossession case has commenced in the legal system, the Land and Conveyancing (Law Reform) Act 2013 now provides a statutory power to the Court, if it considers it appropriate in the particular case, to adjourn a repossession proceedings in relation to a principal private residence in order to allow the borrower to consult a personal insolvency practitioner (PIP) and, where appropriate, to instruct the PIP to make a Personal Insolvency Arrangement (PIA) proposal. In formulating a proposal for a PIA, the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 places an onus on a PIP to do so on terms that shall not, insofar as reasonably practicable, require the borrower to dispose of an interest or cease to occupy a principal private residence.
