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Shane Ross accuses banks of 'washing their hands of problems' by selling loans to vulture funds

Shane Ross has accused banks of 'washing their hands of their problems' by selling non-performing...
Newstalk
Newstalk

09.20 14 Aug 2018


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Shane Ross accuses banks of &a...

Shane Ross accuses banks of 'washing their hands of problems' by selling loans to vulture funds

Newstalk
Newstalk

09.20 14 Aug 2018


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Shane Ross has accused banks of 'washing their hands of their problems' by selling non-performing loans to vulture funds.

The Transport, Tourism and Sport Minister has spoken out against the sale of more than 5,000 loans by Ulster Bank to the American fund Cerberus for €1.4 billion.

It follows the recent offloading of more than 10,000 loans - including for 7,400 private homes - by Permanent TSB to Start Mortgages, an affiliate of US firm Lone Star.

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Minister Ross insisted that "people are not commodities".

Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast, he argued: "It's absolutely unacceptable when people who are residents who live in their homes suddenly become commodities for a bank.

"[Banks] wash their hands of their problems by selling these loads off to vulture funds. Vulture funds behave in a very different way once they get hold of these loans... in a way which is utterly and totally unacceptable, which regards people in their home as numbers who just have to be basically screwed out of their money and ejected from their homes if necessary."

Minister Ross noted that a bill is being introduced aimed at keeping people in their homes.

He explained: "That is to oblige judges to take into consideration not just the fact that people have defaulted on their mortgages - often for very, very good reasons - but the fact they need to be in a home.

"It's a humanitarian bill, which regards these people as human beings, not just as numbers.

"These people are victims - nearly all of them... there are some strategic defaulters of course. But these people are victims of a situation which was not of their picking, and it's not acceptable that they should be thrown to the wolves."


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