Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I do not want to repeat anything, but I wish to make two points. It is appropriate for central Government to set minimum standards across a whole range of areas, however, the elected members of the local authorities may believe it is in the best interest of citizens to go beyond or above the standards in their city or county development plan.

That is something that not only should be considered in various areas of Government policy but already is in some areas. We have a considerable degree of flexibility for local authorities in other aspects of housing policy. I fully agree with the Minister that one does not want consistency in a situation where local authorities are going below whatever is the central Government standard.