Mr. John McCarthy:

To foresee specifics of the implications is one thing. From our point of view, however, we saw very clearly where we were in 2014 and 2015. What led to Rebuilding Ireland in 2016 was that we had a shortage of housing. It was housing delivery generally and not just social housing. The housing spectrum is a continuum. What happens in the private purchase sector affects what happens in the rental sector, the social sector and in respect of homelessness. The Department certainly recognised that housing supply needed to be massively ramped up. Apart from the social housing measures in Rebuilding Ireland, there are a whole range of other measures to try to support that as well.