Families should not be deprived of their home- Costello

22 September 2011

by Cllr Joe Costello

Speaking on the Topical Issue "The need for the Government to ensure that no family loses their house due to inability to pay their mortgage", Joe Costello TD stated that the Government should establish it as a fundamental principle of its' policy in relation to housing and distressed mortgages that where a family makes an honest effort to pay their mortgage they should not be deprived of their home.

"This policy should be as fundamental as the policy of the Land League in the 19th Century under Michael Davitt and Charles Stewart Parnell namely, that tenant farmers should hold on to their "homesteads" at all costs.

"The Government have indeed introduced alleviation measures which have worked to a point - a two year moratorium; deferred payments; interest only payments; mortgage interest supplement.

"Two of my constituents are facing repossession of their houses by the beginning of next month due to bank demands and Court decisions. In one case a young family will become homeless and in the other case a senior citizen will have her home repossessed.

"Present measures are not adequate to deal with the circumstances which have brought them to the precipice. I believe that there is need for a safety net for such families, over and above what is available where the other avenues have been exhausted. It should be possible to go to a Personal Debt Management Agency. This Agency should have the legal powers to provide protection from the creditors of families and homeowners with distressed mortgages so that no family home is repossessed and the family members left homeless.

"It should have the legal authority to buy time to sort out financial affairs and to pursue other avenues including personal bankruptcy for those who have made every effort to resolve their financial difficulties.

"We live in difficult times and austerity measures are necessary but retention of the family home must be a red line for this Government."