Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Rents are escalating and if one builds a lot of houses, one influences the housing market for people who are not on housing waiting lists because there is increased supply. There is value for money in the approach that is taken. Last week, when the Irish Council for Social Housing appeared before the committee, its representatives set out an ambitious plan if a regulation was put on a statutory basis in respect of the number of houses they could build. They were being held back by virtue of not being on a statutory footing. I have always accepted that people have to live somewhere while houses are being built. However, the way it is playing out is perhaps the most costly way by virtue of the time it is taking. Other funds could have been leveraged from, for example, credit unions and the European Investment Bank. In 2021, we are looking at 87,000 households, which will be enormously expensive. Does Mr. McCarthy have a figure on what it will cost at its maximum?