Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 November 2012
465. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality under the new personal insolvency legislation, the criteria and process for employing personal insolvency practitioners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51077/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraI would refer the Deputy to my comments at Dáil Report Stage of the Personal Insolvency Bill 2012 on 7 November, where I indicated the following:
There will be a new Part 5 to replace the current Part 5 in regard to regulation of persons acting as personal insolvency practitioners. It will provide extensive provisions for the regulation by the insolvency service of the new personal insolvency practitioners. There will be regulatory provisions, oversight and provisions to ensure there are indemnities to guarantee that where funds are being dealt with, those using personal insolvency practitioners are protected. As I said in the course of this debate, many of the regulatory mechanisms already exist in other contexts. It is a question of adapting them to the insolvency legislation. A substantial amount of work has been done on that.
There was an issue at one stage as to whether it would be the Central Bank or the insolvency agency that would deal with the regulatory side but in the context of providing a unified focus on the insolvency area it was decided that it would be the insolvency agency. I was optimistic that we would be in a position to bring the amendments before this House on Report Stage but we will have them for the Seanad proceedings. Members will have an opportunity to consider them when they come back from the Seanad.
The engagement of a personal insolvency practitioner to negotiate either a Debt Settlement Arrangement or Personal Insolvency Arrangement will be entirely a matter for the debtor concerned. The debtor will be able to choose from the list of those practitioners regulated by the Insolvency Service of Ireland. As I have said on a number of occasions, I expect that accountants, lawyers and a broad range of financial advisors may wish to seek regulation as practitioners.
