Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Great. I just did not want to cut the AILG out. I thank Councillors Hoade, Colgan, Sheahan, Fennelly and Anglim. It has been invaluable to have the AILG and LAMA before the committee. It was long overdue. The two Bills are very important. Local authorities were initially established essentially to be housing authorities. The biggest social housing project in a decade is under way and it is being driven by the associations and their members. It will deliver more than 30,000 social homes across the 2,000 developments that Councillor Colgan has mentioned. It is of great importance and, as the councillor so succinctly put it, local authorities have been the housing authorities to respond to those who have the greatest housing need, who have been most vulnerable and who have been locked out of our housing market to the greatest extent. The local authorities have played an invaluable role in this regard and that role will continue.

With regard to these two Bills specifically, the committee will need to engage with the two organisations on matters relating to section 183 of the Local Government Act 2001 and on other issues relating to the Bills. We will take these issues up with the CCMA, the Minister and the Department. The witnesses have our firm commitment on that.

With regard to the Moorhead report, we are all working to ensure that the Government fulfils its promise to deliver on the report within its first year in office. We absolutely concur with the associations; it is not just about the financial side of things. None of the witnesses is in this for financial gain. We know that. We all know this business. It is not what motivates local authority members. All of the other supports, the non-financial supports, must also be delivered. I know I speak on behalf of the committee when I say that we are all working to ensure that these supports will be delivered.