KENNY WELCOMES REPORT FROM JUSTICE, DEFENCE AND EQUALITY COMMITTEE ON PERSONAL INSOLVENCY BILL

Posted on March 6, 2012 5:05 PM   |   Permanent Link   

Dublin North East Labour Party T.D., and member of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, today welcomed the report on hearings into the Scheme of the Personal Insolvency Bill.

"Families should be facilitated as far as possible to remain in the family home in any insolvency arrangement, and the Minister should examine the possibility of including such a provision in legislation. The Committee also noted that the Bill contained little detail on how Personal Insolvency Trustees (PITs) would be regulated and paid and the kind of expertise or qualifications which would be required of them.

"All the members of the Committee felt very strongly that MABS, if properly resourced, could take on this primary role and avoid any potential delays to clients in need of advice. The Committee recommends the regulation of former mortgage brokers who may wish to act as PITs.

"The current bankruptcy legislation is outdated and any attempt to address this issue is welcome. We recognise that the Bill is one part of a package of measures aimed at tackling the problem of over-indebtedness in Ireland and seeks to address very complex areas of law and finance. Many people are under major financial and personal stress where, in quite a number of cases, the danger of losing the family home is a real fear. We all need to work together as hard and as fast as possible to find workable and fair solutions to the problem of personal insolvency. The Committee hopes this work and our recommendations and observations will inform the legislative process and make a valuable contribution to the forthcoming legislation.

"We recommend that the Minister for Justice and Equality gives consideration to the issues, observations and concerns raised in this report in the final drafting of the Bill. We look forward to further engagement with the Minister as the Bill progresses through the Houses of the Oireachtas."