Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 6: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality when the new property database which is intended to track and record market trends and house prices will be established [7070/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The programme for a national Government, covering 2011 to 2016, contains a commitment to improve the quality of information available on the housing market by requiring that the selling price of all dwellings be recorded in a publicly available national housing price database. I intend to give effect to this commitment by assigning statutory responsibility for publishing details of residential property sales prices to the Property Services Regulatory Authority.

The Property Services (Regulation) Bill 2009, which was published by the previous Government, provides for the establishment of this authority and is currently awaiting Dáil Committee Stage. I had the Bill re-entered in order that the House might progress it. I intend to table amendments to the Bill which will have the effect of expanding the authority's statutory functions to include the publication of residential property sales prices, as I had advocated from the Opposition side of the House. This information will be supplied to the authority on an ongoing basis by the Revenue Commissioners who are in receipt of the relevant information for stamp duty purposes.

As Deputies may know, the Bill has already passed through the Seanad. I look forward to the debate in the select committee and thereafter in the House, with a view to the early enactment of the legislation. For a number of years I have favoured the establishment of such a database and, particularly in the context of the current market difficulties, it will provide a valuable insight into the state of the property market.

Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. I agree this will be a very valuable tool and a badly needed source of information given that the property market is stagnant at present.

The Minister stated he intended to re-enter the Bill. Can he provide a date for that?

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I understand the Bill has been restored to the Dáil Order Paper although I am open to correction on this. Unfortunately, we cannot start Committee Stage until the committees are formed. As a select committee of the House will derive, ultimately, from a joint Oireachtas committee, we are somewhat stymied in establishing joint committees until we know the outcome of the Seanad elections. I hope the Bill will be taken in very early course when the committees have been formed.