What’s wrong with the Personal Insolvency Bill?
Press Release from Stephen Donnelly TD
DONNELLY CALLS FOR THREE CHANGES TO THE PERSONAL INSOLVENCY BILL.
- Reviews required
- Banks can’t be allowed to define “reasonable standard of living”
- Guidelines needed for Personal Insolvency Professionals
Monday, July 16, 2012 – Stephen Donnelly, Independent TD for Wicklow
and East Carlow, broadly welcomed the Personal Insolvency Bill that
started its journey through the Oireachtas last Wednesday. But there
are three things that need to change.
“Firstly, a regular review process is required to ensure this new
legislation runs smoothly. The minister has suggested a judicial
review after 10 years, which is far too long. A lot of things could go
wrong, with potentially devastating consequences for citizens. To
guard against this, there needs to be an annual Oireachtas review to
ensure a healthy balance between borrowers and lenders is found.
“Secondly, the phrase "reasonable standard of living" that outlines
what a person should be left with during the debt settlement period,
needs to be defined by someone other than the banks, who are likely to
leave debtors with the bare minimum. However, research from the UK
found that paying about one-third of net household income to service a
mortgage and other debts leaves enough for a "reasonable standard of
living".
“My final concern surrounds Personal Insolvency Professionals. These
people will be the front-line troops in the battle to restructure
private debt in Ireland. It is crucial that the individuals and
agencies who deal with debtors are qualified to do so and properly
regulated.”
16/07/2012
Category: Stephen Donnelly TD
