Bobby Aylward (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I was involved for a long time in local government. During the 1950s and 1960s it was always the local authorities which built houses. Is the Department pushing towards voluntary housing bodies in providing social housing instead of county councils? I know that some county councils are better than others in providing houses, but they are all turn-key. When I first entered local government, they were building houses and had their own engineers and staff to build them and so on. Now they look entirely to voluntary housing bodies or just buy them on contract. I am disappointed that that happened. We have lost many good staff. The rural cottages built in the 1940s and 1950s provided a service. Is it being pushed by the Department, rather than making the local authorities do what I reckon they ought to do, namely, build social and affordable housing? I am happy with our local authority in Kilkenny which has been very busy and is way up there.

Other local authorities have not gone so far or have not built houses at all. It is a pity that that is happening. Why is there such a discrepancy between good and active local authorities and those that seem to be falling behind or not making any effort?