Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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I do not disagree with Mr. Coyle, but it is working and the houses are occupied now whereas they were not a year ago. That is my point. I accept all of the issues that Mr. Coyle has properly raised and Oaklee Housing is doing an excellent job in County Louth, where it has transformed areas where houses had actually been burned out and left derelict. That is the future, but doing that work is faster than applying for planning permission and going through the construction phases when houses are sitting empty and boarded up and everything is in place except the families. Obviously, the organisations before us must do significant work on such units, but the average cost in County Louth is approximately €100,000 per home, which is far less than it takes to build a house. I acknowledge and welcome the work that the organisations are doing.

We all have good ideas and are doing excellent work. I take on board the strong point that was made, in that we need to manage the situation more aggressively in terms of achieving outcomes and cutting through the red tape.

We need to plan it and do it. If a special unit is needed to look at the costs associated with individual loans, that should be facilitated. I accept that Mr. Coyle and his colleagues might not have the skills. This work needs to be done. When it is done, it works. Today, there are 50 families in houses that were boarded up a year ago. If this work were done in every county, thousands of homes would be occupied. No infrastructure needs to be built because the water, sewerage and electricity connections are already there. People are already living in these communities. This is an easy win. I thank the Chair for her indulgence.