Mr. John-Mark McCafferty:

My geography degree will come in useful now. There were 8 million people on this island in the mid-19th century. There is a challenge of physical planning. It has not been a strong point of this State but there has been unprecedented growth in the past 25 to 30 years, which would have put pressure on any Administration.

There is a real challenge for both central and local government to respond not just from the point of view of housing but also from the point of view of public transport and wider infrastructure. There is certainly no shortage of land but the question is how do all of these things come together in terms of land, housing, planning and agencies that have land. The various statutory agencies, if they are surplus to requirement, want to maximise the surplus from them for their financial health or that of that Department. There is a wider challenge.

I come from Scotland, which had a population of 5 million when I left in the mid-1990s and it is still 5 million. Ireland has a vibrant economy and society. There are stresses and strains. We could all do better in terms of physical planning and a joined-up approach at a local level, higher densities and some very serious investment in infrastructure, especially public transport infrastructure. All of those things have to come together to make that work. On the idea that Ireland is full, it is far from it; it is about using resources in the smartest way.