Mr. Micheál Mahon:

We are trying to provide independent analysis. If one goes back to the scenario we painted at the outset, the Central Bank has put a roof on what people can borrow for house purchases while costs remain at a certain level. The hard costs are fixed and will only go one way because of supply and demand as well as labour and material costs increasing. It leaves one with few elements of the cost of providing the unit that one can address. Finance is one, along with VAT and land costs. Other items such as levies or professional fees are relatively small in the overall context. We are aware of the social impact of the 3% reduction on the Exchequer and follow-on services. However, this is an emergency, so we are putting it out there. We can show the committee the “what ifs” in an independent manner. It is up to the committee to decide what it wants to do.