Mr. Aaron O'Connell:

On the point about the voids and the offers made, we said at the social housing forum that there should be more research done into the reasons people are refusing housing. The expectations might be too high in some cases but in many cases it depends on the location. The difficulty for some people is that they need to be close to their support networks for them to be able to manage, particularly in terms of the crisis we have endured over many years. The one thing that has kept some families together was their support networks. Those who did not have those support networks fell into homelessness, were on the verge of homelessness or dealing with very stressful circumstances. There is not one answer to those questions but we need to focus on the whys and the wherefores. More research needs to be done on that but networks are important.

People's income is important as well because someone either has transport or they do not. Some of the issues raised were about people on low incomes who were unable to take up the options NAMA provided gave across the country, which were outside transport networks. That is a determinant as to whether somebody will take up an offer.

In terms of those under the age of 26, we are treating them as if they were less equal than others, and that is wrong. There must be equality in terms of the offers made and people should not be treated differently because they are young. That is exclusionary and it must be dealt with. Those young people have no chance of moving out, even if options were available, because they do not have the money to do it. They are being discriminated against at that level, and a major question arises in that regard.

In terms of the choice-based lettings, in some of the more recent cases in Cork there were no offers under choice-based lettings because there was nothing to offer. There are issues around that, and that is part of the problem. It is a question of whether there is a choice and what are those choices. The reality, whether to do with local authority housing or otherwise, is that there are no choices because there is nothing available. That is the problem.

We acquired land by way of compulsory purchase orders, CPOs, for roads and so on in the past. Circumstances are challenging for everybody.

We need to get off the fence in terms of what it is. There is a challenge around people's rights of possession of housing and so forth. They are things that can be overcome for the greater common need. I believe we need to look at it in those circumstances. Where something is not being used, it should be brought into play wherever it can be. Not everything will be suitable. The areas that people are in or the areas available may not be suitable for a particular category, such as in the case of transport. Those things are really important: bus routes, local community facilities, pharmacies, GPs, health centres and so forth.

When talking about families and the new builds - whether they are rapid or otherwise - we must be very clear. Families need to be able to get their children to school. We must not ghettoise people. We must stabilise people's situations. Wherever we can, we should not disrupt people in terms of movement because that has a particularly negative impact on children. Where possible, we must normalise what we can do and keep people as close as possible to their existing networks.

The problem of empty units is a difficult one. There is a clash around the issue of people's rights, but we have to overcome those obstacles. In terms of using a CPO, if somebody is not using a unit, in many respects it is a case of having the right offer. There are challenges around being able to do it, but it is a mechanism that is there and we should look at it.

The Part VIII will speed up the process so that one does not have to go through everything. It is not something we would normally advocate because, as a community organisation and people who work in the community, it is important that we bring the community with us. However, we are in very challenging times now. Everybody must become part of the solution. The task of communities around the country is to accept people into their communities and to become part of the solution as opposed to putting more obstacles in the way.