On Friday last, 31st August 2012, well-known broadcaster and personality, the former Fine Gael minister Ivan Yates was declared bankrupt in Swansea County Court in Wales. This is the official record of his bankruptcy held by the UK’s Insolvency Service.
Ivan is described as a “Retired Businessman and Author of Apartment 25 Meridian Wharf, Trawler Road, Swansea, SA1 1LB” – that’s his new address by the way, not some new book that you might have overlooked! Unlike other Irish nationals being declared bankrupt in the UK in recent times, there is no mention on the official record at the Insolvency Service of an Irish address. It is also not clear what weight was given at the bankruptcy hearing, to recent efforts by AIB to have Ivan declared bankrupt in Dublin. In the case of Tom McFeely, the non-disclosure of bankruptcy proceedings in Ireland was material to the UK courts’ decision to overturn the bankruptcy order and Thomas was subsequently declared bankrupt in Dublin, though it is unclear if a mooted appeal in the UK courts is still ongoing.
The recent trend of financially-beleaguered Irish nationals having home addresses or dual homes addresses in Northern Ireland, England and elsewhere in the UK has not gone unnoticed. About 20 NAMA developers have already been declared bankrupt in the UK, though some of these would traditionally have been regarded as Northern Irish.
What does seem socially unjust is that wealthier individuals who can relocate from Ireland to the UK and who can shoulder the dislocation for a couple of years, can take advantage of the UK’s far more lenient bankruptcy regime which does not allow any creditor to be your gatekeeper if you are insolvent, and generally allows the emergence from bankruptcy in 12 months.
The Personal Insolvency Bill which was published in June 2012 promised to reform bankruptcy for individuals in Ireland. Instead it still gives your creditors, particularly your mortgage lender, the right to stop your bankruptcy bid and traditional bankruptcy at the debtors behest opposed by creditors still lasts 5-12 years. The Bill needs to be amended when the Oireachtas resumes business on 18th September, 2012.
How can it be right that Ivan Yates and his family are forced to move country, whilst at the same time thousands of Irish families are prevented by financial and other constraints from making similar moves, and these other Irish families are consigned to what still remains a barbaric bankruptcy system.
[The Sunday Independent carries an interview with the newly bankrupted Ivan today]
NAMA Wine Lake 
Cannot wait to read Ivan’s book and could not help noticing the veiled threat that he shared an office with Enda Kenny for 10 years. That would be the same Enda Kenny that threw Ivan to the wolves? It will make for interesting reading, and it is indeed an irony that, Irish citizens are fleeing their own countries bankruptcy laws in order to take advantage of the much more attractive bankruptcy regime offered in the UK.
We have a failed insolvency bill before it even gets to the starting gate.
All the best Ivan,gosh the comments on Sindo are chilling.So much misplaced anger and bile.
Shame he can’t get a fresh start in Ireland,pay taxes maybe create a few jobs.
@JG, I read them John – and they make me sick. They reflect the thinking that bankruptcy should be used as a punishment…. and God forbid that anyone should choose to use a more civilised and humane forum (such as the UK) in order to pursue it. Does anyone (other than our politicians and bankers (neither of whom can ever be accused of knowing much) really believe that an amendment to our bankruptcy legislation which allows secured creditors to block the 3 year term is worth the paper it’s written on?
As I have said before, there is no practical reason why the bankruptcy process should take any longer than 60 days, and at some point in the future a more enlightened generation will realise this and act upon it. Meanwhile, the unfortunates who have to avail of bankruptcy will, where possible, leave this carbuncle of toxicity and make use of accommodation 50 miles up the road in Newry or take the ferry to Wales.
I’d prefer if Mr Yates didn’t come back. It’ll be easier on the people still trapped in debt purgatory if he didn’t come back on the radio.
@OMF,
I don’t understand the logic. Ivan Yates entered a bankruptcy process, because he cannot pay his debts. The same process is available to anyone. He has lost everything. What has his location got to do with anyone else, whether they have debts or not? Is this Napoleon and Elba – just because he is broke?
[…] Talking of which, another one-time Fine Gael politico and “expert” business commentator, Ivan Yates, who spent decades extolling the virtues of our wannabe Anglo-American free enterprise system and the bona fides of the Irish entrepreneurial (i.e. managerial) classes, has formerly declared bankruptcy – and his British residency! From the ever-watchful NAMA Wine Lake: […]
The UK BK regime suits what I understand of Ivans particulars as reported. In the UK a pension is protected and better to get BK out of the way prior to receiving any inheritance.
When there appears to be no hope of sensible reform to BK in Ireland, it’s the smart move.
I wonder how many people in Ireland are currently realising the same and will be willing to ‘loose’ everything in order to get their clock reset to ZERO in 1 year as opposed to doing the exact same here in Ireland and having to go through 3 years (+ 5 if you include a BK payment order).
8yrs better than 12yrs but not exactly ‘moderinising’ the law to European norms.
To be fair, it’s something like 7 years in Germany, where there’s plenty of fuming down the years about their own bankruptcy tourists.
But you’re right, 3+5 is still too long. The whole 5 year payment order malarkey is nonsense, it would cost more to administer than it would realise from the discharged bankrupt.
@JR, The main problem with the Irish bankruptcy procedure is the ability of the secured creditor banks to veto the 2 year term. Turkeys don’t vote for Christmas and I have seen nothing from the banks that would indicate their acquiescence to any such largesse.
We don’t have a workable bankruptcy legislation – just one drawn up by the bankers giving a sop to those suffering. The only realistic option is the UK. Typical.
@wstt, agreed. With hope disappearing that there will be a sensible BK possibility for debtors in Eire, how many people will finally decide to go to the UK.
I wouldn’t compare it to, but we export our abortion issues to the UK.
As J. Lynch (I think) said about contraception “we’ll put it on the long finger”
@Will C. agreed as well. apparently there are certain towns in Kent that have expanding numbers of German ‘tourists’ because of the ‘pension’ protection in UK BK law. In general I wouldn’t wish to use Germany as our legal standard, speak to any ex-pat living here.