Dr. Donal McManus:

Matters should not be over-complicated. In the past, there were very good examples of where sites were provided for affordable housing. The old low-cost sites scheme of local authorities was very much localised. It was a national scheme but it was rolled out fairly well. Most of our sector expanded on the basis of the scheme. A small builders scheme linked into this structure activated the construction market over time. Confusion arises sometimes when trying to create a structure in addition to supports to deliver land.

Maybe the mechanism was initially for larger sites but we see it applying to smaller sites also. I refer to the ability to impose a CPO on land and to then use a mechanism such as the low-cost sites scheme to deliver housing. One can link the two together. It is not an either–or situation. Some initiatives worked very well. The low-cost sites scheme was a real driver of our sectoral expansion, as well as for individual owners wishing to build homes. Small builders schemes, as mentioned, attached conditions to how land was used and to building standards. Sometimes people over-complicate things. What is driving this may be a discussion about the market operator. Deputy Ó Broin referred to this. The starting point is probably the market operation and how this could be passed by EUROSTAT and not be on the balance sheet, as with Irish Water. That is driving the discussion in addition to the functional aspects. Things did work before, albeit very much in a piecemeal way. We hope the mechanism under discussion will co-ordinate all the measures under one roof.