Legislation for one-year bankruptcy to be approved to be approved by Cabinet

The Cabinet is set to formally approve legislation next week which will see the term of being bankrupt cut to just one year, the Irish Examiner has learned.

The bill, which has been championed by Labour TD Willie Penrose for almost a year, will be passed by Cabinet for enactment. Despite longstanding Fine Gael objections, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald will bring the memorandum to Cabinet next Tuesday.

The move will be seen as a major victory for the Labour Party and in particular Mr Penrose. His proposals were also opposed by the Department of Finance but Ms Fitzgerald is finalising her analysis of a report on the topic that was compiled by the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality.