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

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I will make some opening comments and then put questions to each of the presenters. This is probably one of the most important issues that this committee will consider this year. Alongside meeting social housing need, affordability is an issue of great importance. The committee will hold a number of these sessions and, ultimately, report with recommendations to the Minister and the Oireachtas. I welcome all of the contributions. There was a very interesting conference held yesterday, organised by the Raise the Roof campaign, which a number of us attended. There was broad consensus both from the floor and among many of the speakers that we need a fundamental shift in our housing policy. What we need is far greater levels of investment in a new model of public housing that meets subsidised social housing need but also non-subsidised, affordable rental and affordable purchase need on a scale to meet existing demand. In this context, the ESRI paper is incredibly important. While we all know anecdotally the affordability pressures in our constituencies, it is the first piece of research I have seen that attempts to quantify the number of people involved and the scale of the affordability crisis. This is one of the issues the committee needs to examine in terms of its report.

My first question is to Mr. Brennan. One of the question marks over not only Ó Cualann Cohousing Alliance but the sector in general is, if the Government was of a mind to spend a lot more money on this model of affordable housing, does the sector have the capacity to meet that spend? This is not an argument against the sector delivering more units. I would just like Mr. Brennan to talk us through the capacity in the sector. On the serviced sites fund, the increase in the fund, or the equity stake that is now apportioned to it, should mark some type of change on what the sector was doing before. Has the sector noted any change? For example, are the local authorities that are in the first round of bids for that fund engaging with the sector?

What is Mr. Brennan's view of the equity stake element of the serviced sites fund? Does it complicate things more or does it not? On the land, my preferred option is that the land is not sold and remains in public ownership. This would allow the units to be in the affordable housing system in perpetuity. If the purchaser of one of Ó Cualann's units wanted to sell, he or she could not do so and make a windfall profit from the rising value of the land. Rather, that purchaser would have to sell back into the scheme. I would like Mr. Brennan to talk us through his views in this regard. Also, did he at any stage examine the possibility of not allowing the tenants to sell the properties into the market but back into affordability, and what were the obstacles in that regard?

My next questions are for the ESRI and the Housing Agency. The research is very good. There are two points I would like the ESRI witnesses to elaborate on in regard to affordability. Many people think that the affordability crisis came about following the crash in terms of the rental market. Will the witnesses elaborate on the reference to structural rather than cyclical issues and to use plain English rather than economic speak such that there is clarity. If I understand it right, what it means is this problem has been around for a very long time. If we or the State wanted to quantify the numbers of households involved, how would we go about doing it? There are estimates in the research but I am interested in hearing how we would quantify the numbers.

Will Mr. Brennan update us on the pilots, including Enniskerry Road, which we have been told for two years is a pilot? I acknowledge the sector is as frustrated as we are about how long it is taking. Will he also talk us through the tension between the cost rental element of the scheme and the affordable element? My understanding is that Enniskerry Road will be provided at approximately 80% of market rent, which means the entry rents in the Enniskerry Road pilot will not be affordable for the target group. Will Mr. Brennan talk us through how an affordable cost rental model can be delivered? For example, could it be done using the capital advance loan facility or soft loans by the State alongside other loans?

On the issue of land, the housing bodies have land and they are engaging with people in that regard. Is the Housing Agency's view that land should be held onto publicly and leased out? What kind of conditions should be attached to it if it is disposed of? My concern is that if public land were to be released to, for example, approved housing bodies, when all of their loans would be repaid, they would own that land. While it might not be the view of the people running the approved housing bodies today to change the use of those properties, they might have different boards of directors with different business models in the future. How can we protect the State's interests when we are putting significant financial investments into public housing? Is controlling the land element one way of ensuring that in perpetuity?