Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This is a legacy issue and is not of the making of the Minister of State. There were major sell-offs over the years and it has sometimes been seen as a windfall for the State. In fact, this is a short-term approach because we end up in a situation, as we have at the moment, in which it costs a fortune to deliver houses because of the shortage. Unless we do something to change this, where there is a direct relationship between the sale of a local authority house and the ability to replace the housing stock, we will continue with the same set of circumstances down the road. It may be that the legislation is not here for six months but will involve a long-term change. We must look at this in the long term and, if it provides for the sale, it should equally provide for the retention of the funds and the replacement of the housing. The proportion of the population that requires local authority or social housing units will not change dramatically. If we do not provide for it through this mechanism, I will oppose the idea that we allow sales without the provision.