Legislation providing for the setting up of a regulatory authority for the auctioneering and estate agency sector is due shortly, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern told the Dáil yesterday.
"Pending enactment of the legislation, preparatory arrangements for the establishment of the new authority are under way. A chief executive designate has been appointed and is engaged in the preparatory work."
He was responding to Green Party leader Trevor Sargent, who sharply criticised auctioneers and estate agents allegedly engaged in malpractice. Mr Ahern said that following the revelations in Monday's RTÉ Prime Time programme, the Data Protection Commissioner, accompanied by the financial regulator, had met associations representing mortgage brokers to discuss the allegations raised.
"I understand that the Data Protection Commissioner is taking very seriously information brought to his attention by the programme. He has launched an investigation into the allegations of improper relationships and the disclosure of information from mortgage brokers to estate agents seeking to force extra money from bidders. This investigation began yesterday with the inspection of a mortgage broker where information pertinent to the investigation was seized and is now under examination."
Powers already existed in statute, he said. "This morning, an inspection took place in the premises of a firm of south Dublin auctioneers." Mr Sargent said the programme's revelations had made him very angry. "We can all be angry about people being forced to live 50 miles from where they work because they cannot afford a house any closer.
"However, the behaviour of the gombeen men and racketeers, who give auctioneers and estate agents a bad name, angered me the most because of their unethical, criminal and downright two-faced dealings with vulnerable, hard-pressed and cash-strapped clients."
He said the Government's inaction had been "shamefully exposed". For example, false bidding at an auction continued quite legitimately. "Yet, if one did this in Australia, one would be put behind bars. False information is regularly provided about the floor size of a property to make it look bigger in its description, but if that happened in the US, it would be a criminal offence," Mr Sargent said.
He asked if "certain activities are permitted as long as estate agents, auctioneers or the Government parties receive a cut of the action at the Galway races".
