Pat Casey (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I am not against the Land Development Agency, I just have some reservations and concerns about it and feel that it could potentially do more. One of the key things that has come across today is that it could bring about stability in development to prevent cycles occurring. I fully accept the concept that, in a time of recession, this agency might be in a position to continue building when the private sector is not. It has a very significant role to play in that regard. I will try to expand my point a little bit further. We should be putting significant resources into the concept of master-planning. It is not going anywhere near far enough. Senator Kelleher has just spoken. None of us ever planned for enough one-bedroom and two-bedroom housing. That is the level of detail we should be getting to within the master planning in order to avoid having too many three-bedroom houses, shops, or whatever other type of unit.

We must invest significant resources in local authorities to enable them to prepare a master plan to the level required. We must then prioritise the provision of infrastructure. We must engage in zoning, come up with a timescale and provide the infrastructure. We can then apply the vacant sites levy in a much more transparent manner. It is being applied in different ways by different local authorities and there is no real transparency.

Mr. O'Neill has mentioned that local authorities have nowhere to send a single person who is living in a four-bedroom house because they have not built any accommodation for such a person. That brings us back to the problem of not engaging in detailed planning, which means that huge opportunities are being lost. If there was high quality accommodation available to such a person, he or she would probably move willingly, but, unfortunately, it is not available.

In terms of financial viability in the context of the fiscal space available, the Land Development Agency is being set up based on a ratio of 60% private and 40% public and on the basis that it will be off-balance sheet. Whether one agrees with the Government, it is stuck with it. If it were to create a model tomorrow morning that 100% of the units would be social and affordable, it would be ruled that it would be on-balance sheet. The sum of €1.25 billion n the fiscal space will prevent us from investing in other infrastructural projects. The Government did not do enough in lobbying EUROSTAT and the European Commission to highlight the importance of housing to us as a society. The provision of social and affordable housing should not be included in the figures for the fiscal space or some percentage of it should be allowed to be excluded. When the 13 large approved housing bodies went from being off-balance sheet to being on-balance sheet, it was not just State debt that was on-balance sheet but every piece of debt. Even private investment in approved bodies now forms part of the fiscal space. The State has not done enough in lobbying the European Union to remove social and affordable housing provision from the fiscal space. If that were done, the Land Development Agency could deliver a lot more social and affordable housing units. That said, I understand it is restricted in what it can do because of the off-balance sheet issue.

Ms Myler suggested local authorities should be buying more land, but they cannot do so without departmental approval. Furthermore, the local authorities cannot borrow any money without departmental approval. If they want to take out a loan, they must first get councillors on board and then obtain the approval of the Department. In fairness, some land was bought at the height of the boom. It was included in the land aggregation scheme, through which we are still working our way. This is an area in which the Land Development Agency should be involved. It should be assessing the potential to use land and buy it before it becomes unaffordable. That is a critical role played by the agency.

Mr. O'Mahony spoke about buying regeneration sites and the fact that the landowner only profited when the land was developed. In that way, the State does not have to fork out initially. I must look it up because it is an interesting concept. I have a question for Mr. O'Neill and Mr. Benson about Home Building Finance Ireland. Is there evidence that it is working? Is it getting into smaller rural areas, including rural towns, where smaller builders cannot access finance? Is there any information available on that aspect?