Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

First, as a country we need to set output targets for total housing, both social and private. I strongly recommend that it be done as part of the recommendations from the committee. We need to consider in a constructive way how land is being managed or made available for social housing. Effectively, we need an asset management system nationwide relating to housing and how houses are managed. We need to look at Article 43 in an open way. I repeat that neither I nor anybody here has all the answers, but it is worth discussing. I absolutely believe that a housing Minister would be a good idea if he or she has all the levers I have spoken about ad nauseamin here; if he or she does not, frankly, it would amount to pure tokenism.

I will run through a few other issues. Choice-based lettings should be brought in nationally for all local authorities. There should be a national system. The example in Cork is excellent, and I complimented the two individuals who ran it, but we should introduce the process nationally. It is evidence-based and a good policy. We have started a process where houses are not just voids but are derelict. That should be concluded, as it would bring back some more stock. Local authorities must take some ownership and embrace the changes brought about in building small numbers of units across the country. They have the capacity through one step to do this. The census will help local authorities in dealing with vacant houses across the country that are not being used. There are a number of relevant tax schemes, including the home renovation scheme and the housing assistance payment, or rental accommodation scheme tax breaks. A scheme using such processes would be a progressive step.

The current housing issue is very difficult and I absolutely believe we must consider how to cut the cost of building. This relates to both the State side, which must lead, and also the developer, material and builder side. It should be across the board, as it is a real issue, particularly given the conditioning that exists because of Central Bank rules, with which I agree. There is a real issue from a political perspective in ensuring that everybody from the body politic can work together from local authority level up to here in the provision of both private and social housing. In that sense, local authorities in particular will have to work on the policies and help to ensure their implementation to a greater degree.

This committee should make some recommendations on the future role of NAMA. The members will be delighted to hear me say that. We must accept where NAMA came from and the boundaries of its commercial mandate. It was set up when the Chairman's party was in government.

Certainly there are assets, knowledge and so on that need to be utilised. That needs to happen. A number of leasing schemes that have been brought forward through my Department regarding the involvement of private investment need to be concluded.

The issue of credit unions has not been raised as I hoped it would be. I met with the credit unions and I would love to see them engaged. Let me just nail one myth: I am not stopping it. They have to get sign-off from the regulator. When they get sign-off from the regulator, they can come back and there will be full engagement with whoever my successor is, I presume. That needs to happen.

I believe the housing needs assessment, which will state how many people are in need of housing and will happen year-on-year, is needed to manage the process and the decision-making into the future because we are shooting in the dark. We have the 2013 figures and then we have the 2015 figures, but nobody knows if the latter are accurate or not because they are taken from local authorities and for all the reasons I outlined earlier.