Mr. Carlos Martínez Mongay:

The Commission does not have any preference concerning the ownership model of the housing market in different member states. We know that in certain member states where certain social choices were made, there is a majority of people who are owners. In certain member states, including Spain and Portugal if I remember correctly, the number of owners is clearly above 80% and is close to 90%. Some countries in central Europe have gone more for the rental market model.

That means that 50% of the households are renting. The Commission has no preference or view as to whether renting or home ownership is better. The question is to understand what is behind the dynamics of prices in both the owner and rental models. That is the important thing. We need to know if there are bottlenecks in supply, whether it is in land, whether there are regulatory constraints that prevent housing in one way or the other for either ownership or renting. The Commission is trying, in the country report, to identify why house prices grow faster in one country than others, whether there is a problem in demand or supply and, if there is a problem in supply, from where it comes. It tries to identify whether it is from regulatory issues, labour shortages or whatever. That is what we try to do.

On social housing, the report on Ireland has highlighted the shortages that exist in the provision of social housing in the country in spite of the efforts of the Government, which plans to build something like 20,000 units, but where the demand is much higher still. In Ireland's case, we see a lag in the supply catching the demand.