Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister, his two Ministers of State and Department officials for coming here.

It was stated that 4,000 affordable housing units would be delivered but fewer than 1,800 have been delivered. Sinn Féin felt that the figure of 4,000 units was too low and I believe that only delivering fewer than 1,800 units is a complete failure. I will give an example of what is happening on the ground. There were 135 affordable houses built in Cork last year.

No one is living in them. At the time my colleague Deputy Ó Broin outlined how the legislation was so complex. It should have been streamlined for the delivery of these houses. What we have at present are houses that have been built for nine months with no one in them. Many people have received mortgage approval from banks that lasts only six months. Now we have people who will not be able to buy these houses even though they applied for them when they were built and they were qualified and entitled to do so.