Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Following on from Senator Fitzpatrick, is the figure she mentioned of €470,000 to build a property the cost of building a three-bedroom terraced house in Dublin? If it is, and we are looking at affordable and social housing, at the current rates of rents and house prices increasing, that means in the next year or two, the average standard terraced house will cost €500,000. That means no ordinary person will be able to afford a house under the current situation and Government, unless it is hugely subsidised. That means no one on the average industrial wage, including gardaí, doctors and nurses, will be able to afford a house. Is that a fair assessment?