Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the two management teams from Mayo and Longford for coming before the committee.

It is meaningful. It is nice to meet the representatives and see the whites of their eyes. This debate gives us a human dimension to all of this topic, which is what this is all about at the end of the day.

I do not have any more questions for Longford County Council other than to say we are concerned about the high vacancy rates. We accept that the county council will do something about that. It is not about communicating to the media but about getting the houses up and ready.

Mr. Brannigan made a valid point about heat pumps. I have just installed one so I know that even with a kitchen fan switched on, or anything that lets air out, it is sucking up the cost. It is quite extraordinary. One of the disadvantages of a heat pump system is that one can overventilate because it sucks up energy and power thus increasing the energy bill. If we approve these schemes, we need to look at the holistic package in terms of the necessary insulation and retrofitting that must go hand in hand. Otherwise, these schemes will be a waste of money. I genuinely thank the delegation for coming in.

I have a few questions for Mr. Kelly. He is looking well and mighty since he moved from Galway County Council to Mayo County Council. He said in his submission that "at present approximately 1,500 housing units are permitted in Mayo". This goes back to what we spoke about in the context of Longford. These units are not going forward, so what is the plan? I think we know what the problems are. Can Mr. Kelly indicate whether any of these units are going forward? Does this relate to how the market has stalled and how developers are reluctant to proceed? I ask him to comment briefly on each of my first set of questions.