Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In essence the scheme is an attempt to bridge the gap for many first-time buyers who have a certain level of income and who cannot afford to purchase on the open market. The State has already done a considerable amount, as the Deputy knows. I know he does not agree with the help-to-buy scheme, for example. However, many thousands of first-time buyers would not have been able to purchase their first home without such support. In the context of a Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage budget of over €5 billion, the €75 million for the shared equity scheme is modest. It is designed to help first-time buyers to bridge the affordability gap.

We believe in home ownership. Of course, we want to see private supply increased and we need to examine the bottlenecks in the system preventing private supply coming on stream in the numbers we need. We should acknowledge the viability issues, particularly relating to the development of apartments in city centres. They are just not viable and are not happening. In my city of Cork, no apartments are being built nor have there been for several years indicating that there are problems there. The scheme is designed to make the purchase of a home more affordable. It will not be for everyone. For those who qualify, it will play a modest but important role in the market when it is operational.