Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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I am going to sound negative, although I hate sounding negative and I do not mean it personally. I do not get the role of housing bodies. I am not saying this in a smart way, but it could seem to some people - I am probably one of them - that many of the functions the housing bodies have taken on were traditionally those of the local authorities and that much of what the housing bodies have done is to replicate the old model, but at significantly higher expense and in a duplicated manner. I know there are some very small housing associations, but if there are 270 organisations providing 30,000 houses, that is an average of 110 units for each housing association. We had a discussion earlier about economies of scale, and this is one. How many staff, including administrative staff, are there in those associations? How many of them have chief executives or directors of finance? How many have separate offices and so on? I am not saying this in a nasty way. I think these are very valid questions because years ago we did not have housing associations, except maybe for specialist accommodation for people with disabilities or whatever, where one could see a certain role. Generally the local authorities did this. It smacks to me of middlemen. I know there is an issue with the fiscal space and there is a function for housing bodies as a mar dhea version of borrowing money. I am not saying I agree with that, but there is a certain logic in it. However, beyond that I honestly do not know why local authorities are not performing this function. The provision of social housing was their job and we need a reorientation in regard to that. I am not saying the housing bodies do not do necessary work, but the issue is how it is being done.

A not-very-funny joke did the rounds approximately ten years ago which suggested that there were fewer homeless people than there were individuals on quite large salaries working for the organisations that deal with homelessness in Dublin. I know that is not the case now but there is an argument to be made in that regard and I would like to see the data relating to the matter. Some of the broader points made by Dr. McManus are obviously correct and were also made by the Housing Agency, which takes a strategic view. I do not mean this in a derogatory way but I do not see how it fits. It is an issue that needs to be-----