The Tribune

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said the government is still working to resurrect its failed mortgage relief programme.

In recent talks with a major bank, Mr Christie said he told executives that he was deeply concerned that the programme went “kaput” after it was initially agreed by financial institutions.

He said prominent businessman Franklyn Wilson was assisting with the formulation of a new plan.

“I told them I was deeply concerned about this mortgage programme that initially they (banks) had agreed with us that we could do it, and it went kaput.

“In recent times a number of women have come to me saying that they didn’t have jobs, and they fell behind in their mortgages. One of them – from Jerome Fitzgerald’s (Marathon) constituency, said that their 74-year-old mother’s house was security so she was faced with losing the house she had and her mother’s house. So I went to the top of the bank on that and I had a discussion with this particular bank.”

Mr Christie added: “I felt encouraged sufficiently when I finished with them to call Frankie Wilson, and I said Frankie I want you to think this through for me. I want you to look at this because I think I have the opportunity to resurrect the programme for mortgage relief.”

Mr Christie spoke at a special ceremony to commemorate his 40th anniversary as a public servant last Thursday.

Mortgage relief was a core element of the Progressive Liberal Party’s 2012 election campaign. The party claimed the plan would have helped more than 1,000 struggling homeowners but last year in the House of Assembly, Mr Christie said the plan would only assist “four or five” people.

Since then, the government pledged to retool the plan so that it would help more homeowners. The government initially allocated $10m to the plan, which was launched in late 2012.