Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have a final question. What would the witnesses say to people on the average industrial wage or on €50,000 or thereabouts who complain, with justification, that they have little spending capacity, are facing difficulties in cost-of-living matters and that these issues are continuing? What is the best means of addressing the situation of that particular group? On the basis of discussions today and in recent weeks, we are aware of people who are on an income too high to qualify for a local authority mortgage and too low to qualify for a mortgage from the banks. These people are forced into very high rental costs because they have to live somewhere. That is a growing problem at the moment. The only thing that is possible for them to do is to rent in a very high market. As a result, they leave themselves with very little spending capacity to meet the normal cost-of-living issues.