Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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That is exactly my point. Currently, prices are already nearly back to peak levels whereas incomes are certainly not in terms of purchasing power so there is a problem. In many cases, people cannot buy at these prices and if they are going to buy, they are going to have to take on a lot of debt. That is a fiscal risk. It is not just a housing problem. It is also a fiscal risk surely if the social housing provision of the State relies, very significantly, on leasing and other arrangements with private sector providers that are charging the State very high prices.

That is the case. Is that not a fiscal risk that the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, IFAC, should be warning about? Should we not be concerned that there is an over-reliance on the private market to deliver affordable housing and that this liability could balloon massively if property prices continue in their current direction?