Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

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The Irish housing market is a scam. It is an enormous financial swindle that could potentially confine an entire generation of young Irish workers to years of bad debt. Far from being a reflection of economic vitality and fundamental demand the housing bubble is, in the main, a vacuous financial confidence trick that has been foisted on us by an alliance of banks and landowners.

Today, in Ireland, the price of the average house is close to ten times the average wage. This represents an economic failure on the monumental scale. Behind this nonsense is excessive and irresponsible lending from our financial institutions. The situation would be laughable if it were not so serious.In 2003, a full four or five years before the bubble finally burst, did Mr. McWilliams get it absolutely right, and should Bank of Ireland and other banks not have seen the same factors?