Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for his contribution and for his help during my recent visit to Clare. During that visit, we visited a number of different sites to see what is happening. It was good to see the proposals for housing there.

We have been working on the tenant purchase scheme and will come to a conclusion on it very shortly. I spoke to the Minister of State, Deputy English, about it yesterday. I understand the points that have been made by academics in this area, and that by the Taoiseach yesterday, in the context of losing social housing stock while we are trying to increase it. However, I think the aspiration to home ownership must be there for all our citizens and we are trying to find the right balance. The current scheme does not have the right balance.

As stated earlier, the Housing Agency is carrying out a review on HAP and social housing eligibility. It should have been concluded by now but it needs a bit more time and will be done shortly. In the Senator's own area of Clare, 1,272 homes have been the subject of HAP, with 22% available at discretion, which is a 20% uplift and amounts to 283 homes. On average, the rate of discretion was 18.7%, which is quite high as compared to other local authorities, and that will contribute to pressures around HAP in the area. I have a more detailed report which we gave to the committee and which I am sure the Senator has on file.

We are encouraging local authorities to pay more attention to Traveller-specific accommodation. A number of families are in emergency accommodation - too many. Local authorities are having problems in placing families owing to objections being raised locally and we are trying to deal with that as best we can.