Last Monday, 37 cases were brought by banks and building societies for the repossession of homes. If there were 37 cases before the courts, it is fair to assume that several hundred homes have been repossessed without having to go to court. Meanwhile, the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government published a report yesterday showing that the number of people on council housing waiting lists has increased by 30% to 60,000. This increase occurred in the three years up until March 2008, which is the time before the major job losses occurred. These were the three best years for house building in Ireland, when one would have expected a significant return of houses under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000.

This is probably the biggest social ticking time bomb in this country. If 2008 was the year that saw 100,000 people lose their jobs, then 2009 is shaping up to be the year when people's homes are repossessed. There is already evidence of cases being brought by building societies to put people out of their homes. It does not have to be like that. There are ways in which arrangements can be made so that for the duration of the recession, people can at least stay in their own homes. The biggest fear people have — bigger than the fear of losing their jobs — is of losing their homes. It is crazy.

Banks and building societies are repossessing homes they cannot sell in this market. If a bank manages to sell a house, it will not recoup the amount of money the house was bought for. When a house is repossessed, the family concerned ends up on a council housing list. It will have to be allocated a house by a local authority at some stage, or paid rent allowance to rent a home somewhere else.

Will the Government come up with an approach to ensure that people can continue to live in their own homes while they are getting through the two, three or four difficult years that are ahead of us? Those whose homes are being repossessed now will be back on their feet again within a couple of years. All that is required is an arrangement whereby one's mortgage can be suspended and rent allowance can be applied to the home one is living in. Perhaps the rules of the mortgage interest subsidy scheme, which have not been changed for some time, can be revisited. It may be possible to apply shared equity through local authorities. Arrangements need to be put in place, through the State or lending agencies, to assure people that they can stay living in their own homes. It looks likely that a slew of people will be taken to court in 2009 to have their homes repossessed. We need to ensure that people are not put out of their homes, as that would require the State to pay them to live somewhere else, in effect.

The Government is proactively seeking to safeguard the interests of households that are experiencing difficulties in making mortgage payments as a result of circumstances beyond their control. Our priority is to ensure, as much as possible, that mortgage arrears do not result in legal proceedings seeking home repossession. The Government has insisted that banks participating in the guarantee scheme confirm their compliance with the Irish Banking Federation's code of practice on mortgage arrears. That detailed and robust code has been operated successfully by banks in Ireland since 2000 on a voluntary basis. The primary purpose of the code is to take every possible step to avoid recourse to repossession proceedings. The code states clearly that in normal circumstances, the lender will not seek repossession of a property until every reasonable step to agree an alternative repayment schedule has been exhausted.

The Deputy spoke about the need to modify repayment schedules to meet new circumstances. I remind him that approximately 7,000 people avail of the mortgage interest supplement scheme. Some 70,000 people are catered for under the rent supplement scheme. The banks are bound by the federation's code of practice, which I have mentioned. Approximately 50 houses were repossessed by mainstream lenders in 2007. More recent statistics on court proceedings involving house repossessions indicate, as the Deputy suggested, that there has been an increase in the number of repossession applications to the courts. Most applications are being made by sub-prime lenders, rather than mainstream banks that have adopted the code of practice on mortgage arrears.

I am concerned about the extent to which some non-mainstream lenders are having recourse to the courts and seeking orders for house repossessions. It is important for the Financial Regulator to urgently explore with such lenders, in the context of the implementation of the requirements of the consumer protection code, the steps that are needed to minimise court interventions that are ultimately not in the interests of lenders or borrowers. There is a strong case for extending the code of practice on mortgage arrears to the small number of mortgage lenders that are not subject to it at present. I will ask the Minister of State with responsibility for housing to take that matter up as a matter of urgency. The Money Advice and Budgeting Service, which has 53 local offices, continues to advise and work with clients on the restructuring of payments. That local resource is open to everyone. I have made the points I wanted to make in response to Deputy Gilmore's question about the repossession schedule.

With respect, the Taoiseach has given us a commentary on what is happening. The codes of practice to which the Taoiseach referred were drawn up during normal times. These are not normal times. Many people have lost their jobs over the last year. Many more people are facing the prospect of losing their jobs or their businesses. They are stuck with mortgages that, in many cases, they cannot afford to pay. The mortgage subsidy scheme needs to be updated. Under the present rules, if one half of a couple is working 30 hours a week, and possibly earning a very low income, the couple is not entitled to the mortgage subsidy. That needs to be revised. There is a certain irony in the Taoiseach's suggestion that people go to the 53 Money Advice and Budgeting Service offices throughout the country. Does he not recall the announcement by the Minister for Finance on budget day that the service is to be absorbed into the community information centres? The Government has decided to rationalise an agency that needs to be accessed by people who are in trouble.

Absolutely not.

The Government has decided to emasculate the service.

The Deputy is completely wrong.

I am not asking the Taoiseach to ask the banks and building societies to change their codes of practice. On behalf of the Government, he should take action. A scheme to give families a guarantee that they will not lose their homes needs to be brought before the House by the Minister of State with responsibility for housing, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government or the Minister for Social and Family Affairs. There is no point in telling families that they should take their chances in court. Such people often end up spending more money on legal fees, to defend court actions for repossession being taken against them by building societies like Start Mortgages, than the amount of the arrears on their mortgages. This real problem is beginning to surface in the courts. There is evidence to suggest that many of these cases are backing up. We will see many more of them in 2009.

The Government should not be required next year to take emergency action to deal with this problem, which is staring it in the face. It can take action now to prevent the pain that families would have to endure if attempts were made to repossess their homes in 2009. The Government should change its housing policies, the mortgage subsidy arrangements and the rent allowance regime. It should enter into an arrangement with the banks, to which it has provided a guarantee, to ensure that the mortgages of people who find themselves in trouble can be suspended for two or three years while such people get back on their feet. Such an arrangement would make economic sense for the State, the lending agencies and the families concerned. The Government should take action now. Contrary to what the Taoiseach appears to be suggesting, it is not merely a question of encouraging the lending agencies and pointing those who are in trouble in the direction of the offices of the Money Advice and Budgeting Service. Many such offices are likely to be closed some time next year anyway.

The Deputy was making some good points, but he concluded with a facetious comment. The fact is that the common management of the Money Advice and Budgeting Service will remain in place. Front line services will not be affected in any way. I did not suggest that the service represents a panacea in this instance. It is important to make people aware that an objective service is available to help them. My own knowledge of these matters indicates that many people are being assisted by the service on a daily basis. People in certain circumstances are getting very good mortgage deals with lending institutions. The Deputy should not be facetious. The service has a role to play. It is playing that role. It does not cover all of the issues. As a local resource, it is providing practical answers to people in an accessible and speedy way.

I have indicated that the Financial Regulator has been instructed to consider whether the consumer protection code, which has been in place since 2000, can be extended to lenders in the sub-prime sector who are going to the courts to seek repossession orders as a first resort, rather than as a last resort. It is clear that when insecurity arises in respect of people's job prospects, they discuss such matters with banks at their own initiative. Banks are having to make suitable arrangements to ensure people can repay their mortgages. As I have said, the Minister of State with responsibility for housing is examining all issues to determine how the Government, in addition to offering the protections that are already in place, can be of assistance in this regard.

On changing housing policies, the Minister of State with responsibility for housing has been quite innovative in trying to increase the options available for those who wish to access social and affordable housing. Regarding building, I understand 14,500 households in need of social housing had their needs met last year alone, which is important. I also recognise that up to 45% of those on waiting lists are single-adult households. There are also people from our immigrant community who require housing, which is a new factor and component behind the growth in some of these categories.

Despite the difficulties in the finances, more than €1.5 billion of Exchequer funding is being provided this year to ensure that we support social housing activity in 2008, which will provide more than 9,000 new dwellings in the course of this year. The Minister of State with responsibility for housing has also introduced changes to roll out further the rental accommodation scheme, meeting the needs of households currently in receipt of long-term rent supplement under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme. He has been very proactive with homeless groups in trying to deal with the long waiting lists in that area through a far better interaction between the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and local authorities in getting people into homes. I believe the initiative he will start at the beginning of next year will produce some important results in that area. He has also provided for a long-term leasing arrangement for local authorities, whereby vacant houses on the market at present can be obtained by local authorities and provided for long-term lease.

That is what happens if they lose the house. I am asking what the Government will do to stop them losing the house.

Allow the Taoiseach to finish.

The Deputy should check the record of the House. Deputy Gilmore inquired about the rise in the waiting list for social housing. In his supplementary question he also asked me to indicate what changes in housing policy we are making to adjust to these new realities. I am simply pointing out what those are.

Those are not changes. It is as you are.

It is not as you are. The new incremental purchase scheme has also been introduced, which works with the Affordable Homes Partnership and others, who have made some very good proposals on shared equity to ensure that people who are in rental accommodation at present could get onto the ownership ladder in accordance with and as appropriate to their own particular needs.

The Government is pulling out the plug instead of turning off the tap.

Under the development plan over the next seven years we intend to meet the needs of some 100,000 households in all of these categories. Housing remains a priority of our capital investment programme. I believe €1.5 billion this year and commensurate money next year is an indication of our determination in not only working with the industry, but also bringing about certain changes in how schemes operate, to provide the greatest level of choice so that social housing is not just a question of waiting lists for local authority builds, but is also using the capacity in the private sector through these schemes for people on social and affordable housing lists to access homes more quickly than would otherwise be the case.