Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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Yes, and it will not just be targeting homes. We will target what is not currently being used, or at least has not in recent years been used, as a home. That is an important factor to consider. I have already spoken to officials about the process and I hope I will have another chance to speak about it with regard to the review that has begun. It is a daily part of my work. As I consult with the different stakeholders in all this, it is a chance for me to hear from them about some of the initiatives they feel could be picked up. Their time has come in terms of what we have done in the past 12 months and what the Department and the previous Minister have done. There is an opportunity here as well and I welcome the submissions I have already received from members of the committee about what they feel still needs to be done in this process. I met the former Minister at the Department, Deputy Coveney, after my first meeting in the job, which was with the Secretary General, and he went through a couple of matters he felt worth picking up and which may not have been addressed in the course of the past 12 months.

It is important that we put property interests on notice that we need to move quickly with more ambitious plans where there are empty homes or other forms of property that are empty. This is a crisis to be dealt with and we must move quickly now to release assets and make them into homes for people who need them. That includes the State's direct obligation to provide social homes and look after people who cannot afford to rent near to where they work or who want to buy because they are starting families. It is about dealing with the different aspects of this problem as they present. It is key as we consider the supply measures that must be brought online. This is not just about finding new financing and sites or new ways of leveraging sites. It is not about getting people to build more quickly. This is also going to be about existing stock and making sure it is used appropriately, given the immediate challenge we have. I hope we can introduce measures for a two or three-year period until new supply is brought online with new builds. That is something I am examining now.

Deputy Boyd Barrett asked a number of questions on a topic we discussed last week, including about defective buildings and regulations, fire and building standards and the fire safety review and standards. There are a couple of things going on. The Deputy is aware that, immediately after the Grenfell tower tragedy, I convened officials in my Department to ensure we moved immediately to live safety inspections in local authority housing and using the building control management system to notify landlords of their obligations in this regard. It is a series of work that needs to be done and this is the beginning. We had the chance to debate this with the Green Party's Private Members' motion and it also came up with the issue at Lynam's Hotel.

A second phase of work will now commence. I hope to make a statement later today relating to the establishment of a new task force within the Department-----